The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters may have found their answer to the San Miguel Beermen.
Maurice Charlo, a replacement reinforcement, made a monster debut as he led the Elasto Painters with 35 points to give his team a 106-105 win over the San Miguel Beermen, Friday evening at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.
The dominant Beermen squad dominated their opponents in the opening frame through the backcourt of Marcio Lassiter and Alex Cabagnot. The duo torched the opposing defense, while Tyler Wilkerson feasted in the paint en route to an imposing 32-14 lead to end the first quarter.
However, disaster struck for the Beermen midway through the second quarter. As reigning MVP June Mar Fajardo went for a rebound, he stepped on Charlo’s foot. Fajardo grimaced in pain and had to be taken out of the game. San Miguel’s center was then taken to a medical facility by halftime for an MRI.
With Fajardo out, the Beermen struggled to sustain their offense. The Elasto Painters made a quick push via stretch big man JR Quinahan and Charlo. In addition, Jeff Chan and Chris Tiu helped complete the comeback, as the once 19 point lead to a tied game at 44-all before halftime.
“We got a big break with June Mar injuring himself or accidentally by a teammate,” Rain or Shine head coach Yeng Guiao said about Fajardo’s injury. “I don’t know what exactly happened. But that’s the biggest break.”
After closing in on the Beermen, the Elasto Painters were able to finally taste their first lead of the game in the third canto. Charlo was able to knock down a long triple to put his team up, 56-55.
With the two teams tied at 76-all entering the final frame, Charlo continued his hot-shooting from distance. With the game still close, the import was able to knock down a triple to put Rain or Shine ahead, 101-100, with two minutes remaining. A blown layup by Chris Ross and, on the other end, a bucket by Gabe Norwood gave ROS a 105-100 lead with 16 ticks remaining.
Marcio Lassiter, off a timeout, was able to quickly drain a triple to cut the lead to just two points, but Charlo answered with a thunderous dunk afterwards. Cabagnot was then fouled while attempting a three-pointer but missed the second free throw. A split by Charlo sealed the win for Rain or Shine, 108-105.
“Another good thing for us was we got the import that we needed,” Guiao said about his new import.. “He’s not as big as the other imports but he’s a great defender.”
Charlo scored 35 points, 24 in the second half, and was able to grab 13 rebounds. Moreover, he was able to drain six triples. JR Quinahan added 15 points on 7/14 shooting.
On the other hand, Tyler Wilkerson had 33 points on 13/24 shooting and grabbed ten rebounds. Lassiter and Cabagnot had 18 points each.
The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters (3-3) look to continue the momentum they have built against the Mahindra Enforcers on Wednesday, March 16 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. The San Miguel Beermen (3-2) look to bounce back as they face the Alaska Aces in the second game of the day.
The Scores:
Rain or Shine (108) – Charlo 35, Quinahan 15, Ahanmisi 13, Tiu 13, Chan 12, Cruz 6, Ponferada 5, Belga 4, Lee 3, Norwood 2, Almazan 0, Ibanes 0, Trollano 0.
San Miguel Beer (105) – Wilkerson 33, Lassiter 18, Cabagnot 18, Ross 12, Santos 10, Espinas 4, Fajardo 4, Lutz 4, Semerad 2, Arana 0, De Ocampo 0.
Quarterscores: 14-32, 44-46, 76-76, 108-105.
