Up 3-1 in the race-to-four affair, the Elasto Painters can claim the first Finals berth with another win on Saturday.
Just when the Mixers threatened at 62-66 after coming back from a 36-54 deficit, Ronnie Matias stepped up to the plate, hitting clutch baskets and pulling down one offensive rebound after another to keep San Mig Coffee at bay.
A PJ Simon-led uprising enabled the Mixers to close in again at 74-77 with 1:11 to go, but Chris Tiu doused cold water on the San Mig Coffee rally, scoring the final six points of the game.
“That’s just the nature of this team,” said Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao. “Paul Lee played a horrible game, but there’s always someone on the team ready to cover up. This game, Ronnie Matias, Chris Tiu and Gabe Norwood stepped up.”
Norwood led the Elasto-Painters scoring parade with 14 points. Lee, who was averaging 12.3 points per game, was held to only two markers on 1-of-7 shooting from the field.
http://pba.inquirer.net/7519/rain-or-shine-nears-2nd-straight-finals-stint
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