PBA: Cone credits Chan as Ginebra outguns Rain or Shine

Jeff Chan won two PBA titles in his eight years with the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, but that did not matter much on Sunday as he torched his former team to give Barangay Ginebra San Miguel a 102-89 win in Game 1 of their best-of-five semifinals series.

Chan was a picture of efficiency off the bench, hitting 21 points in 21 minutes with three triples and a 6 of 10 overall clip. He also added four rebounds and two assists with no turnovers.

Jeff Chan vs Jay Washington

“In that game, he was the difference,” said Cone of Ginebra’s fairly new acquisition in Chan. “Jeff is a really great weapon when he has good players around him. He is really dynamic and Jeff showed that tonight.”

Chan, along with Justin Brownlee and Greg Slaughter, tallied a combined 76 points- enough to bury Rain or Shine in a deep enough hole to cruise to victory.

Justin Brownlee was outstanding, finishing the game just one assist shy of a triple double. The import socred 35 points with 14 rebounds and nine assists, along with four blocks and two steals. Greg Slaughter, meanwhile, scored 20, as Joe Devance added 12 with five boards and five assists.

The Gin Kings lead from start to finish, managing to be ahead by more than 10 points for most of the second and fourth quarters. Coach Tim Cone’s squad went up by as many as many as 24 points in the endgame.

The Elasto Painters just could not keep up. Reggie Johnson did most of the damage with 30 points and 13 rebounds, teaming up with James Yap as the only starters to score in double figures. Yap tallied 15 points, as Ed Daquioag provided the lift off the bench with 10.

Chris Tiu and Gabe Norwood struggled as starters, hitting a combined nine with a 4 of 14 shooting average. Jewel Ponferada, Jay Washington, Beau Belga, and Maverick Ahanmisi also had a rough night, hitting just 22 points off an 11 of 35 clip. As a team, Rain or Shine finished the game with a 36% fieldgoal percentage, while allowing the Gin Kings to hit 49 percent from the field. — LA, GMA News