PBA IMAGES
Rain or Shine sent Mahindra crashing back to earth with a 103-88 victory Friday in the 2016 PBA Governors’ Cup at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Beau Belga set the tone for the Elasto Painters, scattering 13 points, eight rebounds, and four assists as new import Jason Forte played limited minutes.
“We had to do most of the hardwork all-Filipino,” said coach Yeng Guiao. “Jason Forte had one practice with us, flew early morning yesterday at 4 a.m., practiced with us at 10 a.m., and he suited up for us tonight.
So I told the guys that we can’t expect too much from him and we’ll do most of the work tonight all-Filipino.”
Raymond Almazan topped Rain or Shine with 14 markers and five boards, while Paul Lee and Jericho Cruz got 12 points apiece.
Forte got 10 markers and six rebounds in almost 17 minutes in his debut for the Elasto Painters.
The win put Rain or Shine at solo sixth place with a 4-4 record, stopping its losing skid at two while also ending Mahindra’s two-game winning streak.
Manny Pacquiao momentarily played at the tailend of the third and started the fourth for the Enforcers, but that seemed to energize the Elasto Painters as they zoomed to a 20-point lead, 99-79, late in the game courtesy of a 35-point finishing kick.
“We expected a hard game against Mahindra. We had a double-digit cushion playing almost all-Filipino,” said Guiao. “We didn’t expect the win to be this way, so maybe, it’s a good sign for us.”
Aldrech Ramos paced Mahindra (6-3) with 17 points, on a 3-of-6 shooting from threes, and five rebounds, while reinforcement James White got 16 markers and 10 boards.
The Scores:
RAIN OR SHINE 103 – Almazan 14, Belga 13, Cruz 12, Lee 12, Chan 10, Forte 10, Norwood 7, Quinahan 7, Ahanmisi 6, Trollano 5, Ponferada 4, Matias 3.
MAHINDRA 88 – Ramos 17, White 16, Guinto 12, Yee 12, Revilla 8, Taha 6, Agovida 5, Digregorio 5, Aguilar 4, Bagatsing 2, Ballesteros 1, Elorde 0, Jaime 0, Pacquiao 0, Webb 0.
Quarters: 20-15, 46-44, 68-63, 103-88.