PBA champ Sta. Lucia ends Rain or Shine's season

MANILA, Philippines – Defending champion Sta. Lucia cut short Rain or Shine’s playoff excursion with a methodical 92-85 Game 2 win Friday night to advance in the semifinals of the PBA Philippine Cup for the second straight year. Veteran big man Dennis Espino pumped life into the Realtors’ erratic first half scoring by finishing with 19 points, while league most valuable player (MVP) Kelly Williams had two back-breaking three-pointers late in the fourth period that took the fight out of the Elasto Painters at the Astrodome. The Realtors, a runaway 101-84 winner in Game 1, swept the best-of-three quarterfinals series and now brace themselves for a rematch with top seed Alaska Aces in the best-of-seven semifinals affair that begins on Wednesday. Booking another final-four berth also kept Sta. Lucia on track of trying to become the first team since Great Taste in 1985 to repeat as Philippine Cup champion. Espino, the finals MVP when the Realtors bagged the title of the same conference last year at the expense of the Purefoods Giants, also had two blocked shots and went 9-of-11 from the foul line while anchoring a big Sta. Lucia run in the third period. Along with Paolo Mendoza, the 6-foot-5 former Santo Tomas stalwart, led Sta. Lucia’s offensive charge beginning the second half, when the Realtors outscored the Elasto Painters, 27-14, to take with them a 66-59 lead entering the fourth after trailing by six at halftime. But Rain or Shine opened the final 12 minutes of play with a big 8-0 run to regain the uuperhand, 67-66, as Allan Salangsang hit back-to-back three-pointers. The Realtors however, won’t be denied as Williams came to the rescue of the embattled champions by nailing two straight baskets from downtown, pushing the Realtors safely in front, 83-77, at the final two-minute mark. Without suspended rookie Gabe Norwood, Ryan Araña took the scoring cudgels for Rain or Shine with 17 points, while Sol Mercado and Don Dulay had 14 each as the Elasto Painters’ first ever playoff stint in the league come to an end. – GMANews.TV