BENGALURU, India — Rain or Shine secured the No. 2 spot in Group B of the PBA Season 50 Governors’ Cup following a convincing 133-130 victory over Phoenix Super LPG on Friday at the Ynares Center in Antipolo.
The Elasto Painters poured in 83 points in the middle chapters for an unassailable 110-84 lead entering the payoff period en route to finishing their elimination round campaign on a winning note after losing to Magnolia last game.
Coach Yeng Guiao and his men finished with a 6-4 record and have forged a best-of-5 showdown against the third-seeded team of Group A in Converge in the quarterfinals, which begins this Sunday, October 25.
(C) PBA Images
“Before ‘yung laro, bilin ko lang… mas maganda kung mananalo tayo, pasok tayo ng quarterfinals, ng playoffs, on a winning note. That would be a good starting point for us,” the champion bench tactician offered.
Jhonard Clarito top-billed in the balanced attack that saw a total of eight players finish in double figures, tallying 18 points and 11 rebounds to register just his first double-double outing in the season-ending conference.
Aaron Fuller also had 18 points and added eight rebounds. Adrian Nocum produced 17 points, with Mike Malonzo supplying 13 and 10.
Leonard Santillan had 13 points as well. Felix Lemetti supplied 11, Luis Villegas flirted with a triple-double with 10 points, seven rebounds, and seven assists, while fellow big man Caelan Tiongson chipped in 10 markers in the rout.
“Gusto namin playoff mentality na; ‘yung effort namin playoff effort na,” said Guiao, whose charges knocked down a total of 16 triples. “Pinupush ko talaga ‘yung mga bata na isipin nilang playoffs na ito. Parang mental and physical preparation na rin namin ito para sa playoffs.”
(C) PBA Images
Marcellus Earlington had 20 points to lead the Fuel Masters, who ended the group stage with a 5-5 record and will wait for the result of the bout between Ginebra and Blackwater, being played as of this posting, for their seeding.
Gian Mamuyac and Francis Escandor poured 16 points each against their former team, but their efforts unfortunately weren’t enough, as Phoenix badly missed the production of lead big man Jason Perkins due to injury.
The Scores:
Rain or Shine 133 – Clarito 18, Fuller 18, Nocum 17, Malonzo 13, Santillan 13, Lemetti 11, Tiongson 10, Caracut 6, David 6, Cuajao 4, Asistio 4, Belga 3.
Phoenix 103 – Earlington 20, Mamuyac 16, Escandor 16, Rivero 9, Tuffin 9, Chua 8, Ballungay 8, Santos 6, Cullar 5, Delos Santos 2, Ando 2, Tio 2.
Quarterscores: 27-30; 69-62; 110-84; 133-103.
