PBA: Meralco overpowers Rain or Shine to force quarterfinals rubber match

Meralco dominated twice-to-beat Rain or Shine, 96-79, in the PBA Philippine Cup quarterfinals on Saturday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum to force a rubber match in their series.

The Bolts came out firing, erupting for a 35-15 first-quarter lead behind Cliff Hodge and Chris Newsome, who scored 10 and nine points, respectively, in the opening frame alone. Meralco stretched its advantage to as much as 34 points in the second quarter, 56-22, at the 5:29 mark, before heading into halftime with a commanding 58-31 lead.

Meralco continued to keep Rain or Shine at bay in the second half despite several rally attempts by the Elasto Painters, who cut the deficit to 12, 87-75, with 2:57 remaining in the fourth quarter. The Bolts, however, answered with a decisive 7-0 run to pull away and effectively seal the win.

Newsome, Hodge, and CJ Cansino led Meralco with 14 points each, while Aaron Black and Jansen Rios added 12 points apiece.

For Rain or Shine, Adrian Nocum and Gian Mamuyac were the only players in double figures, finishing with 17 and 16 points, respectively.

The series-deciding do-or-die Game 3 will be played on Monday.

Scores:

Meralco 96 – Newsome 14, Cansino 14, Hodge 14, Black 12, Rios 12, Almazan 9, Banchero 6, Quinto 6, Bates 5.Pascual 2, Reyson 0.

Rain or Shine 79 – Nocum 17, Mamuyac 16, Clarito 9, Norwood 9, Santillan 6, Malonzo 6, Tiongson 6, Pringle 5, Lemetti 5, Belga 0, Caracut 0, Asistio 0, Villegas 0, Porter 0.

Quarters: 35-15, 58-31, 78-60, 96-79.

—JKC, GMA Integrated News