Rising Suns cut Giants down to size behind Pinto’s 22

John Pinto of Cagayan Valley (dark) vs Jason Ballesteros of Jumbo Plastic (light). PBA D-LEAGUE IMAGE by Nuki Sabio

MANILA, Philippines — Cagayan Valley rode on its guard John Pinto to beat Jumbo Plastic, 82-78, in the PBA D-League Aspirants’ Cup Monday at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.

Pinto scored 15 of his game-high 22 points in the second half as he proved to be too much for the league’s top defensive team.

Andrian Celada added 17 points built on five-of-eight shooting from long distance while Michael Mabulac had a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds for the Rising Suns, who improved to 7-2.

“We played bad in the first half because the guys tend to lose their composure everytime Jumbo plays physical. So during the halftime break I told them to just stick to our game plan and that’s exactly what they did in the second half and it paid off,” said Cagayan Valley coach Alvin Pua, whose team trailed by as much as 11 points late in the second period.

The Suns capitalized on an erroneous second half by the Giants, who committed a total of 25 errors that led to 27 turnover points.

Mark Romero paced Jumbo Plastic, which dropped to 5-2, with 22 points while Jan Colina added 16 points.