REID STARS AS RAIN OR SHINE FINISHES NO. 2
Arizona Reid sent out a warning with a 22-point first quarter and ended the game with a bang, a turnaround left corner jumper over the outstretched arms of Ian Sangalang with 1.1 seconds to play that lifted Rain or Shine to a 95-94 thriller over San Mig Super Coffee Monday in the PLDT Home Telpad PBA Governors’ Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The dread-locked dynamo had 39 points, nine rebounds, and three assists to secure the number two seed for the Elasto Painters, setting the stage for a dance with Air21 in the quarterfinals.
“Two weeks ago, we’re just trying to survive. We’re just trying to avoid elimination. And we never thought that we’ll be at second place with the way we were playing at the start of the conference,” said Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao, whose wards have now extended their winning streak to five. “We had a good run. This is a five-game run now and that’s a good way to make the quarterfinals.”
Gabe Norwood had 10 of his 12 points in the second half, while Raymond Almazan corralled 10 markers and six boards for the E-Painters.
“This game didn’t feel like it was a no-bearing game for the two teams,” Guiao said, as both teams have already assured themselves a twice-to-beat edge in the playoffs prior to the matchup. “We just wanted to get to the next round on a winning note. That’s why we tried hard to win this game. Also, both teams were trying to keep their players fresh because there will only be a little rest for teams playing in the playoffs.”
“We’re playing on Wednesday so we try to just be efficient, you can see that in our players.”
Reid carried Rain or Shine in the first half and made it look like it was going to be a rout, as the E-Painters grabbed a 14-point halftime advantage, 60-46.
But the Coffee Mixers’ starters rallied back to the game with a 27-point third period, and nipped the advantage once more to grab the lead 82-79, with 8:27 left in the payoff period.
With SMC’s subs playing significant minutes in the fourth, it was Ian Sangalang who fueled the squad, delivering six straight points that stretched their lead to six, 89-83, with 3:46 remaining.
But when Reid made his return to the hardcourt, that’s when things changed again, as the former Best Import awardee ignited a 10-0 run to give ROS back the lead, 93-89, with 61 ticks remaining after a Jervy Cruz elbow jumper.
Marqus Blakely would then answer right back for San Mig, scoring on an and-one play to trim the lead to one, 93-92.
The ensuing possession was a wild one, with Reid missing on a drive and Cruz grabbing the offensive board, but was forced to give up the ball as he sailed out of bounds. The ball went to Alex Mallari’s hands, who then lobbed the ball to a streaking Blakely, who in turn missed on the alley-oop play. But fate would smile on San Mig as Ronnie Matias scored on a putback, his first field goal in a Coffee Mixers jersey, to give the sky blue side a 94-93 lead with three seconds to go.
But just like a pendulum swinging, it was Rain or Shine’s turn to grab the spotlight as Reid drilled the jumper to give his side the 95-94 edge, with 1.1 ticks remaining.
James Yap’s potential game-winning three went way short, and the E-Painters preserved the win.
Marc Pingris led San mig with 15 points, while Sangalang had a double-double of 14 markers and 15 rebounds. Peter June Simon had 13, as Blakely got 10 points and 10 boards.
The Rain or Shine win also spoiled the first San Mig game for Yousef Taha, who had seven points and 12 rebounds in his first game for coach Tim Cone.
With the quarterfinals matchup set, Rain or Shine now shifts its focus on seventh-seed Air21.
“It’s a very interesting matchup for us. Air21 is going to be a handful for us,” Guiao said. “They’re playing their best conference so far, the best two conferences including the last conference.”
“What makes it a bit more interesting, for me personally, was we played Air21 in our first game when I was out of the country. I really wanted to coach, but this is my chance to redeem myself in terms of being able to help my team this time around playing against Air21,” the Kapampangan coach added, as he noted that 103-96 Air21 win in their eliminations matchup last May 20.
“We have problems with big teams, the same with the problems we had with San Mig Coffee and San Miguel Beer. We’re a small team and we have a small import so Asi (Taulava) will be a problem and their import (Dominique) Sutton will be a problem. All we can do is to contain their big men with our undersized big men,” he said.
“We’ll have to work hard on denying them touches at the low post. There’s really very little we can do once they get the ball inside. What we don’t want to happen is Asi and their big men getting the ball close to the basket. That’s the first order of the day for us.” (RL)
The Scores:
RAIN OR SHINE 95 – Reid 39, Norwood 12, Almazan 10, Belga 8, Lee 7, Cruz 6, Chan 6, Teng 4, Arana 3, Uyloan 0, Tiu 0, Nuyles 0, Ibañes 0, Rodriguez 0.
SAN MIG SUPER COFFEE 94 – Pingris 15, Sangalang 14, Simon 13, Blakely 10, Yap 8, Taha 7, Melton 7, Barroca 6, Mallari 6, Devance 4, Maliksi 2, Matias 2, Holstein 0.
Quarters: 34-28, 60-46, 77-73, 95-94.
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