Reversal of roles

Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net

All it took was a long break and some really tough defense down the stretch.

All of a sudden Magnolia has transformed from the team that was nearly pushed to the edge to the squad that is now a win from making it to the PBA Philippine Cup Finals.

The Hotshots, brandishing a defense that reduced Rain or Shine to a three-point tossing crew, hammered out an 82-74 victory on Wednesday night at Cuneta Astrodome for a 3-2 series lead over the Elasto Painters.

Magnolia can ice the series with a Game 6 victory on Friday after crawling out of a 0-2 hole in the race-to-four affair.

“We tried to focus more on defense and limit their score under 90. Defensively I’m proud of what we’ve done,” Magnolia coach Chito Victolero said, adding that the Lenten break helped his team find its legs in this series.

The Hotshots raced to a 49-36 lead in the third period when Gabe Norwood caught fire, knocking down triples to spur a Painters rally. James Yap and Norbert Torres joined the fray with a triple each.

Somewhere in between, Victolero urged his team to let its defense hold sway. “They won’t beat us with outside shots,” he said during a timeout huddle.

True enough Rain or Shine’s shooters began firing blanks in the fourth. Ed Daquioag buried two triples almost nine minutes apart, but in between, the Painters hit just a single field goal.

Rain or Shine also missed three out of eight freethrows in that stretch and muffed three chances to take the lead there. The Hotshots forced two three-point misses from Yap and a turnover on a Painters fastbreak.

After Yap’s second miss, Ian Sangalang padded Magnolia’s lead to 75-71. Norwood missed a triple and Rafi Reavis completed a three-point play that put the Hotshots up, 78-71, 1:36 remaining.

Rain or Shine took 41 attempts from beyond the arc—the Painters only attempted 34 inside it—and made just 12.

“We’re number one in points allowed in defense [in the past]. As long as our defense is in good shape, we do well,” Victolero said.