Rain or Shine sped up the game to offset its size disadvantage as the Elasto Painters turned back the Barangay Ginebra Kings, 94-86, to earn a quarterfinal slot in the 41st PBA Philippine Cup last night at the Araneta Coliseum.
Rain or Shine caught up with the San Miguel Beermen and the Alaska Aces to forge a three-way tie at the number-one spot with similar 6-1 (win-loss) records.
Rain or Shine, San Miguel and Alaska are now the front-runners for the two outright semifinal slots.
Rain or Shine negated Ginebra’s size advantage with its high-octane game.
“Size is their biggest advantage but quickness is ours. We pushed the pace, and we’re lucky to make our shots thus making it difficult for Greg Slaughter who is their main weapon,” said Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao.
“We’re now in a good place to be. We’re tied for the lead with a week-long break ahead of us. It’s a good break for us,” Guiao added.
Ginebra’s three-game win streak was snapped, pulling the team down to 4-4 (win-loss).
Jeff Chan paced the Elasto Painters with 19 points, while Jericho Cruz and Maverick Ahanmisi added 16 and 13, respectively.
Japeth Aguilar topped the Kings with 22 markers, while Slaughter finished with 19.
In the other game, the GlobalPort Batang Pier ended their two-game slide by beating the hapless Blackwater Elite, 120-115.
The Batang Pier got a huge lift from Terrence Romeo, who came off the bench to finish with 26.
GlobalPort nailed its fourth in seven games, while dealing Blackwater a third straight debacle.
“It was a total team effort,” said GlobalPort coach Pido Jarencio. “Masama iyung mga pagkatalo namin sa Alaska at Ginebra kaya kailangan talaga manalo naman ngayon, para umakyat,” added Jarencio, whose team is now tied with the NLEX Road Warriors at the fifth and sixth spots in the team standings.
GlobalPort’s remaining assignments will be against Meralco, Mahindra and Talk ‘N Text.
Though it has a slim chance of earning an outright semis berth, GlobalPort is looking to earn a twice-to-beat edge in the first phase of the quarterfinals. Carlo Lastimosa fired a a career-high 31 for the Elite, who fell to 1-6, just a half-game ahead of cellar-dweller Meralco, which is at 1-7.