The PBA continued on Wednesday with a Lenten week special at the Smart Araneta Coliseum between two young, up-and-coming squads and a tussle pitting a couple of veteran teams with championship pedigree. Here’s a recap of the action:
Rain or Shine Frustrates NorthPort Behind Fiery First Quarter
Gian Mamuyac fired 13 of his 22 points in the first quarter to lead the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters to a 113-96 drubbing of the Arvin Tolentino-less NorthPort Batang Pier.
Mamuyac’s hot opening salvo helped Rain or Shine race out to a 31-17 lead—one that the Elasto Painters nursed for the rest of the game. Leonard Santillan added 17 points and 10 rebounds, while Andrei Caracut scored 15, including 12 in the fourth quarter to power Rain or Shine to an equally strong finish. Caelan Tiongson and Adrian Nocum chipped in 15 and 10, respectively, while Gabe Norwood scattered 9 points and 10 boards.
Will Navarro had 22 points and 12 rebounds for NorthPort as he tried to pick up the slack for Tolentino, who missed the game due to right hip flexor injury he suffered in NorthPort’s win over Terrafirma. Joshua Munzon addd 14, while the comebacking Jio Jalalon and rookie Evan Nelle added 11 apiece. Sidney Onuwebere chipped in 10 despite several dust-ups with Rain or Shine’s Tiongson.
The scores:
Rain or Shine (113) – Mamuyac 22, Santillan 17, Caracut 15, Tiongson 15, Nocum 10, Norwood 9, Asistio 9, Malonzo 7, Clarito 5, Borboran 4, Escandor 0, Lemetti 0
Northport (96) – Navarro 22, Munzon 14, Jalalon 11, Nelle 11, Onwubere 10, Flores 8, Bulanadi 6, Yu 5, Taha 5, Miranda 4, Tratter 0, Cuntapay 0
Up Next:
Rain or Shine vs. Meralco Bolts on April 27 (Ynares Center)
NorthPort vs. Blackwater Bossing on April 25 (Smart Araneta Coliseum)
Magnolia Rallies Past San Miguel in Potential PBA Finals Preview
Despite a hellish shooting night, Mark Barroca came through in the clutch, making two critical buckets in overtime to help the Magnolia Hotshots overcome the San Miguel Beermen, 98-95, in what could be a PBA Philippine Cup Finals preview.
Barroca finished with just 7 points on 2-for-10 shooting, but most of his makes came in the final one minute of the game—a jumper from the left wing to give the Hotshots a 96-95 lead with 47 ticks left and another jumper this time from the left corner to extend the lead to 98-95. The veteran added 7 assists and 4 steals.
Young guns Zavier Lucero and Jerom Lastimosa led the charge, scoring 24 and 21, respectively. Peter Alfaro and Calvin Abueva chipped in 11 apiece and Paul Lee had 10 to help the Hotshots overcome a 10-point deficit late in the third. June Mar Fajardo led the way for the Beermen with 17 points and 17 rebounds, while Juami Tiongson added 17 as well. CJay Perez had 14 points and 5 boards but also committed 7 turnovers.
The scores:
Magnolia (98) – Lucero 24, Lastimosa 21, Alfaro 11, Abueva 11, Lee 10, Sangalang 8, Barroca 7, Dela Rosa 4, Reavis 2, Dionisio 0, Laput 0, Ahanmisi 0, Balanza 0, Escoto 0
San Miguel (95) – Fajardo 17, Tiongson 17, Trollano 16, Perez 14, Ross 10, Brondial 10, Lassiter 3, Cahilig 3, Tautuaa 3, Cruz 2, Teng 0
Up Next:
Magnolia vs. Phoenix Fuel Masters on April 26 (Zamboanga City)
San Miguel vs. Barangay Ginebra San Miguel on April 23 (Smart Araneta Coliseum)
2024–25 PBA Philippine Cup Continues
The 2024–25 PBA Philippine Cup takes a Lenten break before returning on Wednesday, April 23, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum with the two finalists of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup making their Philippine Cup debut. The TNT Tropang 5G will meet the NLEX Road Warriors in the first game, while Barangay Ginebra San Miguel will test Terrafirma Dyip.
