E-Painters outplay Coffee Mixers to take 1-0 lead
Ranged against the taller San Mig Coffee Mixers, Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao knew the Elasto Painters needed to crash the boards to stand a chance.
Hardworking Jervy Cruz heeded Guiao’s call, and coupled with solid plays on both ends in the second half, Rain or Shine got an ample reward Wednesday night, a 91-83 decision over San Mig Coffee to take a 1-0 lead in their best-of-seven PBA Philippine Cup semifinals series at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
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Playing bigger than his 6-foot-4, 220-pound frame, Cruz hauled down a game-high 15 rebounds, seven off the defensive glass, on top of seven points and a block, fully complementing ace gunners Jeff Chan and Paul Lee.
Chan broke out of his shooting slump by clustering all but two of his game-high 18 points in the first half while the 6-foot-1 Lee racked up nine of his 15 points in the fourth plus four rebounds and three assists.
Unassuming forward Larry Rodriguez came off the bench and collected 11 of his 15 points in the third canto, where Ryan Arana collected all his seven markers, before the E-Painters showed enough poise to withstand the Mixers’ late-game fightback.
Guiao, whose charges also won the battle of the boards, 48-46, best summed it up, saying: “The bigger frontline of San Mig Coffee was a concern but we needed to just work harder than they did to at least equalize.”
“We’re confident we can stay with them, we can match-up with them. They’re the best defensive team but I know we’re the second-best. We have two good defensive teams playing together and it’s a matter of execution,” he noted. (Story continues after slideshow)
Center Yancy De Ocampo had another all-around outing of 17 points, six boards and four assists, but the Mixers clearly failed to sustain any headway in the face of Rain or Shine's timely buckets and gang-rebounding in the second half.
“Sabi ni coach ‘Tulong-tulong kami sa rebounds.’ Kaya energy na lang ang puhunan namin. Lahat naman kami nagtatrabaho–umiskor man o kahit dumipensa lang,” related Cruz.
After Chan hit his full stride in the first half, the E-Painters then leaned on Rodriguez and Lee in the third, with the two combining for 18 points–nearly outscoring San Mig crew–as Rain or Shine took a 65-57 cushion into the fourth.
The Mixers, however, fought back behind Mark Barroca and De Ocampo, whose basket pulled them within 67-69 before Lee drilled in nine straight points that preserved the Painters’ lead at 77-70, with over seven minutes to go.
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San Mig Coffee threatened anew at 81-85 courtesy of a De Ocampo triple with 3:01 left but Rain or Shine didn’t crumble under duress, scoring six straight points while coming up with tons of offensive boards for a whopping 91-81 bubble.
Forward Marc Pingris had 10 points in the first half but could only add another four while Barroca finished with 12 points, four dimes and three caroms. Former two-time MVP James Yap, however, was virtually a non-factor, tallying 11 points on 3-of-13 shooting from the field.
Game 2 is scheduled on Friday at the MOA Arena.
