Rain or Shine improves to 2-0, routs Mahindra

By Randolph B. Leongson

Rain or Shine made it two wins in a row after it grounded Mahindra, 108-94, Sunday in the 2016 Smart Bro PBA Philippine Cup at Smart Araneta Coliseum.

With the Elasto Painters able to create separation in the third quarter, head coach Yeng Guiao got more opportunity to give his rookies further exposure and they delivered with Maverick Ahanmisi scoring 11 of his 14 points in the fourth quarter.

Ahanmisi, the third overall pick, also had five rebounds and two assists while fellow rookie Don Trollano chipped in eight points.

“Overall, I was able to give our rookies and new acquisitions some minutes and that’s good for their confidence. This is going to give them a feel of what this league is all about,” said Guiao.

JR Quinahan also got 14 markers while Jericho Cruz and Jeff Chan both ended up with 12 points apiece.

Mahindra playing-coach Manny Pacquiao achieved a career highlight, finally hitting the first field goal of his PBA career at the exactly the 10-minute mark of the second quarter.

But it was also around that time when Rain or Shine turned the tide and fought back from an early 10-point deficit, capitalizing on the euphoria of Pacquiao’s milestone to restore order and pile up its lead to as high as 22, 97-75, in the final frame.

“We’re still struggling with our first half. We struggled with our first two quarters, pero buti na lang nakaka-recover ng second and third (quarters). But we cannot keep on doing that and make it a habit. We need to have a good start and good finish,” said Guiao, as the Elasto Painters go to a nine-day break with their 2-0 record in tow.

Aldrech Ramos paced the Enforcers with 14 points and seven rebounds while LA Revilla got 14 markers, seven dimes, and five boards.

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