Alaska survives Rain or Shine as Aces start 'last dance'

The Alaska Aces survived a pesky Rain or Shine Elastopainters squad, 80-74, as they made the first step of their "last dance" in the PBA Governors' Cup on Thursday at the Araneta Coliseum.

After being tied at 60 at the end of the heated third period, the tight affair continued until Alaska widened their lead to five, 74-69, with less than three minutes left in the game. However, Andrei Caracut made a triple at the 1:36 mark to cut the deficit to just two points.

Alaska import Olu Ashaolu completed a layup to push the E-painters to a 76-72 lead, before Bryan Faundo split his charities off a Henry Walker foul to bring back the Aces lead to five.

Beau Belga scored with 35 seconds left to cut their deficit to three, but a Maverick Ahanmisi basket against Belga inside the paint with 13 ticks left widened the margin.

Before the game wrapped up, things heated up with both Belga and Robbie Herndon getting called for technical fouls. A split from Herndon sealed the deal for Alaska.

The Aces went hot early in the game, creating a 10-point lead to end the first quarter, 26-16, before the Elasto Painters answered with a 23-point rampage in the second quarter to end the first half at 39-all.

Ashaolu produced monster numbers for Alaska with 23 markers and 17 boards, while Abu Tratter had 11 points for the Alaska victory. Herndon proved to be significant in Alaska's defense, making 14 rebounds on top of his nine-point output.  Allyn Bulanadi had two points and two rebounds in his pro debut.

Rain or Shine reinforcement Henry Walker posted 25 points and 13 boards, while Mike Nieto added 13 points in the losing effort. Caracut listed a conference-high eight points, all made in the second half of the game.

Alaska improved to 4-2 in the conference while Rain or Shine went down to 3-4 in the standings.

The Aces will face Terrafirma Dyip on Saturday as they play their final games in the league, while Rain or Shine will go against Meralco on Sunday.

Scores:

Alaska 80 – Ashaolu 23, Ahanmisi 14, Tratter 11, Herndon 9, Teng 7, DiGregorio 7, Faundo 3, Adamos 2, Bulanadi 2, Racal 2, Tolomia 0.

Rain or Shine 74 – Walker 25, Nieto 13, Caracut 8, Mocon 6, Belga 5, Borboran 5, Santillan 4, Torres 3, Asistio 3, Jackson 1, Ponferada 1, Tolentino 0, Guinto 0, Norwood 0.

Quarters: 26-16, 39-39, 60-60, 80-74.

—MGP, GMA News