Rain or Shine’s Javee Mocon. PBA IMAGES
MANILA, Philippines—Rain or Shine put a stop to its two-game skid as it turned back Magnolia, 75-72, in the 2021 PBA Philippine Cup Friday at DHVSU Gym in Bacolor, Pampanga.
With the fourth quarter becoming a tit-for-tat affair, rookie Santi Santillan and Beau Belga put up a five-point swing to give Rain or Shine a 72-68 lead with 1:42 to play.
Ian Sangalang cut the Painters’ lead to two, 72-70, with 1:26 remaining but Norbert Torres quickly answered with a jumper to give Rain or Shine a 74-70 cushion with 1:09 left in the game.
“It comes down to the little details especially in big games like this against a Magnolia team which is playing extremely well,” said Painters head coach Chris Gavina. “The margin for error against a team like this is very minimal.”
The Elasto Painters improved to a 5-4 record for the sixth spot in the standings while the Hotshots slipped to no.3 with a 6-3 card.
Javee Mocon finished with a team-high 19 points with eight rebounds, and three steals to lead Rain or Shine while James Yap and Santillan both had 14 points.
Sangalang led the Hotshots with 21 points and 10 rebounds while Calvin Abueva had his own double-double of 12 points and 13 boards.