Confident Aces shoot for 2-0 vs E-Painters

ARMED with the impression that the enemy is conquerable, Alaska guns for a commanding 2-0 lead over Rain or Shine as their Final Four series in the PBA Philippine Cup resumes today at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.

Coming off a morale-boosting 87-80 Game 1 win, the Aces will be entering the 5 p.m. contest as the slight favorites.

The series opener had looked like it would be another Rain or Shine party after the Elasto Painters—who have had the Aces’ number for most of the year—built a 17-point lead in the second quarter.

But Alaska persevered, slowly nibbling away at that deficit to make a game out of it at halftime.

And after coming back to raze that 34-17 gap, the Aces knew they could turn the tables on the Painters, who dealt them a 3-2 nipping in the Governors’ Cup Final Four last season and then won their match, 95-98, in the eliminations.

“They have been beating up on us in the past,” said Alaska coach Alex Compton.

“This (Game 1) win gives us the knowledge that we can beat them. It’s not winning the series outright, but we know we can beat them. It’s nice to win, but you have to get to four [wins]. We still have to try to get better.”

Rain or Shine mentor Yeng Guiao was left to ponder what went wrong Thursday, when everything seemed to be going well until their offense sputtered in the most crucial moments.

That loss snapped the Rain or Shine win streak at seven games that dated back to Nov. 24 in the eliminations.

Paul Lee, the former Rookie of the Year who is the heart and soul of the Painters, struggled and made just seven points.

That could be the scary thing as far as the Alaska defense is concerned, as Lee is known to have the knack for stepping up when the chips are down for the Painters.

Calvin Abueva was again the source of energy for the Aces, who won despite not being able to completely shut down the Rain or Shine offense. Alaska has made some teams look bad here because of its gung-ho defense.

Abueva finished with 14 points and 14 rebounds in Game 1. Rain or Shine will have to make sure that the dynamo out of San Sebastian doesn’t take over again.