PAUL Lee of Rain or Shine grabs the loose ball against Meralco?s Reynel Hugnatan. Lee, the phenomenal playmaker of the Painters, and Hugnatan, the veteran big man, are expected to play key roles for their respective squads tonight. AUGUST DELA CRUZ
Rain or Shine tries to all but put Meralco away Sunday when the Elasto Painters shoot for a commanding 2-0 lead in their best-of-five PBA Commissioner’s Cup Final Four series at Smart Araneta Colseum in Cubao.
After carving out an impressive 99-86 series-opening win and getting some badly needed rest during the Lenten break, the Painters will again come to the 5 p.m. game as the odds-on favorites to put the Bolts in a huge hole.
Rain or Shine used total team effort in mowing down the Bolts last Tuesday, breaking away at the start of the fourth period as Meralco simply just couldn’t keep in step with its main guns jammed by the Painters’ defense.
READ: Rain or Shine disposes of Meralco for 1-0 lead in PBA semis
Import Wayne Chism scored 18 points on 7-of-8 shooting, and Paul Lee tossed in 14. And while they were the only ones in twin digits, coach Yeng Guiao was able to get practically his entire lineup to score with three tossing in nine each.
The Bolts also didn’t know who to shut down in the stretch, with a number of players stepping up for Guiao.
Meralco’s Josh Davis was held down to just 11 points and would have to assert himself offensively if the Bolts are to avoid going 0-2 down against one of the tournament’s powerhouses.
Must-win
“This is definitely a must-win for us,” Meralco coach Norman Black said. “We have tasted what it is like to be in the semis and hopefully, we will respond better and with more energy in Game 2.”
The winner of this series will advance to face the survivor of the Talk ‘N Text-Purefoods race-to-three affair, which the defending champion Star Hotshots lead after a 91-85 Game 1 win.
Rain or Shine’s experience in playing this deep in the playoffs is what Guiao said was the main factor in drawing first blood, unlike the Bolts, who are in their first best-of-five semifinal series.
Rest
The four-day rest could have also allowed main outside gun Jeff Chan the chance to recover from painful legs that held him to very limited minutes in Game 1.
READ: Chan hopes long break will help him recover from foot injury
If Chan comes in at 100 percent, he could provide more of the outside shots that would allow the Elasto Painters to open up Meralco’s interior defense and make Rain or Shine exploit its advantage in size even more.
Meralco is also undermanned, with the Bolts to miss Jared Dillinger for the rest of the series because of an injured left knee sustained in their quarterfinal series with sister team NLEX.
Board meeting
Meanwhile, the league’s board of governors convenes again on April 8 as it prunes down the list of candidates for the new commissioner to six, according to chair Patrick Gregorio of PLDT.
Gregorio said that the headhunting firm that the board assigned has already interviewed 20 potential candidates, which it will present to the team representatives.