Alex Mallari of NLEX is defended by Rain or Shine’s James Yap.
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NLEX continued its impressive run after outlasting Rain or Shine, 122-114, in double overtime in the 2017 PBA Governors’ Cup Wednesday night at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The Road Warriors ended the game on an 11-2 run inside the last three minutes with a 3-pointer by Larry Fonacier off an assist by Kevin Alas putting the game away with 58.9 seconds left.
“We have to learn how to win games like this if we want to go up to the next level. The challenge is to beat contenders and to beat them in a hard game like this,” said NLEX head coach Yeng Guiao.
“It’s still a learning process for us. To beat Rain or Shine is a testament to the progress that we made,” added Guiao, who guided the Elasto Painters to two championships in his five seasons with the franchise.
The Road Warriors are now off to their best start in franchise history at 3-0 (win-loss) after going 2-9 in the previous two conferences.
Aaron Fuller posted 33 points and 20 rebounds while Alas, who was named Player of the Week, had another sterling performance with 24 points, 12 coming in the fourth quarter and two overtime periods, 10 rebounds and five assists.
Alas forced the second OT, 110-all, after scoring on a layup over ROS big man Beau Belga with 2.6 seconds left.
Maverick Ahanmisi flirted with a triple-double with 13 points, eight rebounds and seven assists. He also sank the game-tying basket, 101-all, with 23.5 ticks remaining in regulation.