PBA: Balanced attack helps Rain or Shine draw first blood against Petron Blaze

(Updated 10:27pm) The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters cruised to a 103-95 victory against the Petron Blaze Boosters in game one of their PLDT MyDSL 2014 PBA Philippine Cup semifinals series, Monday, at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Paul Lee was named Best Player of the Game for his 18-point performance, leading seven Elasto Painters with at least seven markers. Jervy Cruz poured in 15 points and six rebounds, while Beau Belga added 11 points. Ryan Arana tallied 10 points and four rebounds.

The Elasto Painters extended their winning streak to a conference-best 10 games by imposing their dominance on Petron. The Elasto Painters led by double-digits for most of the way before notching their first win in the best-of-seven series.

[Infographic: #2 Rain or Shine vs #3 Petron Blaze]

"We did a good job defensively. This is a powerhouse team and it was the effort and desire of the boys that got us through this first win," said Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao.

Guiao's wards forced the Boosters into 25 turnovers while committing only 15.

The fiery coach also had praise for Rain or Shine's up-tempo attack tonight, as they flew past Petron 35-29 in fast break points and 24-13 in turnover points.

"This is the way we want it played: we want it fast, we want it open court," continued Guiao. "We know Petron also likes to play in the open court really well, but I think with our rotation we can sustain it better over a seven-game series, if needed be.

"We're ready to play a fast, furious pace, and let's see what happens," he said, saying the Boosters can expect more of the same throughout the semifinals.

JR Quiñahan missed today's game due to some slight swelling in his knee, but Guiao should be okay to play again on Wednesday, also at the MOA Arena.

The Elasto Painters scored 10 unanswered points midway through the first quarter, 20-10, as turnovers led to fast break finishes for Alex Nuyles and Paul Lee on the other end. Chris Ross returned the favor though for Petron, and scored eight of their last 10 points on the break to end the first quarter trailing 28-20.

The Boosters continued to push the tempo in the second quarter and tied the game, 28-28, on Jojo Duncil's and-one. However, the Elasto Painters' defense returned to form as they reeled off a 19-7 run, highlighted by Beau Belga driving twice against June Mar Fajardo, 47-35.

With two minutes left, Marcio Lassiter's three-pointer gave Petron just their second field goal since the 9:55 mark, and helped trim the deficit before halftime, 49-40.


The Elasto Painters stretched the lead to as much as 17 points after the break, 65-48, behind Lee's buckets inside and Nuyles' playmaking. But the Boosters slowly got June Mar Fajardo going in the post, though his 12 points in the quarter failed to get them within single digits as they continued to trail, 76-63, after the third period.

Arwind Santos opened the fourth quarter by crushing a dunk over Gabe Norwood, and hustle plays brought the lead down to 80-69. However, with Norwood directing the offense on the other end, Rain or Shine pushed the lead back up to 15 points, 94-79.

Santos gave the Elasto Painters a late scare with two minutes to play, as he leaked out in transition for baskets, while a Lassiter trey at 1:28 made it an eight-point game, 96-88. But Lee drew a foul on the drive on the next possession and converted from the line to bring the lead back up to 10.

Chris Lutz salvaged a miss for his first basket of the game with 37 seconds left to get within six, and Petron was forced to foul Lee again. Lee's charities pushed Rain or Shine to the century mark, 100-92. Lassiter hit a triple off a Petron timeout before the Boosters opted to test Belga at the line. Belga though converted both.

The Boosters used their last timeout to get Lassiter one last look from deep, but the ball went halfway down before falling into the hands of rookie center Raymond Almazan. The rookie split his freebies, 103-95, with 20 seconds to play, wrapping this one up.

Rain or Shine finished shooting a 36-of-93 (38.7 percent) clip, while Petron was actually better, going 37-of-89 (41.6 percent) from the field.

June Mar Fajardo bannered Petron with 23 points, 15 rebounds and three blocks. Marcio Lassiter and Arwind Santos tallied 20 points each, and the latter added 17 boards, three steals and three blocks. - AMD, GMA News



The scores:

Rain or Shine 103 - Lee 18, Cruz 15, Belga 11, Arana 10, Nuyles 9, Almazan 7, Rodriguez 7, Norwood 7, Chan 6, Teng 6, Ibanes 5, Tiu 2, Tang 0

Petron 95 - Fajardo 23, Lassiter 20, Santos 20, Ross 8, Hubalde 6, Cabagnot 4, Lutz 4, Duncil 2, Tubid 3, Lanete 2, Kramer 2

Quarter scoring: 28-20, 49-40, 76-63, 103-95