Rain or Shine repulses late San Mig Coffee rally, moves one win away from finals

InterAKTV · Thursday, December 27, 2012 · 8:59 pm

PBA/Nuki Sabio

The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters turned back a late charge by the San Mig Coffee Mixers to pull out an 83-74 victory over the San Mig Coffee Mixers Thursday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Game Four of their Philippine Cup semifinals series.
The win gave the Elasto Painters a 3-1 series lead, just one victory away from their first Philippine Cup finals appearance in franchise history.
There were many heroes for Rain or Shine, including Ronnie Matias, who got key baskets and offensive rebounds late in the game to help preserve the win.
“Ronnie Matias just hustled his way to become the best player of the game,” said Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao about Matias, who finished with eight points and five rebounds. Six of those points came in the fourth quarter, when San Mig Coffee charged back from an 18-point deficit to cut the lead to just three points.
“Si Coach Yeng, sabi sa ‘min unahin muna namin yung depensa kesa sa opensa. Mananalo talaga kami sa depensa,” said Matias.
Guiao said he chewed out Matias in the locker room at halftime after several lapses in the first half while defending against San Mig Coffee superstar James Yap, who led all scorers with 20 points.
“Nakawala si James nang dalawang beses sa kanya. When he came back, he more than made up for mistakes,” said Guiao.
Rain or Shine won despite a sub-par game from Paul Lee, who scored just two points.
“Paul Lee played horribly but other guys stepped up,” said Guiao, who had five players scoring at least eight points. Gabe Norwood led Rain or Shine with 15 points, including a gorgeous reverse alley-oop slam in the second quarter off a pass by Chris Tiu.
“Any time others are not able to contribute, then others will contribute.”
Rain or Shine looked like it had the game in the bag, taking a 54-36 third quarter lead. But the Mixers came roaring back in the fourth quarter behind Yap, Peter June Simon, and Joe Devance. A three-pointer by Simon cut the lead to 77-74 with under a minute remaining in the game, but timely defensive stops allowed the Elasto Painters to score the final six points of the match, all from Tiu.
“It’s a big win for us because now we get three chances to make the finals,” said Guiao, whose team will have a chance to finish the series Saturday.
The scores:
Rain or Shine 83 — Norwood 14, Arana 13, Chan 12, Tiu 10, Matias 8, Cruz 6, Belga 6, Rodriguez 4, Quinahan 3, Ibanes 3, Lee 2, Tang 2.
San Mig Coffee 74 — Yap 20, Simon 15, Devance 14, Pingris 7, Ramos 5, Reavis 4, De Ocampo 4, Barroca 3, Gaco 2, Villanueva 0.
Quarters: 18-10, 40-32, 62-52, 83-74