The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters made it back-to-back wins on Sunday as they rallied to beat the Titan Ultra Giant Risers, 112-111, at the Ynares Center in Antipolo. With the win, which was made possible by some clutch free throws by Anton Asistio, Rain or Shine joined three other teams with identical 3-1 records for the top spot in the standings. Titan Ultra, in contrast, dropped to 1-4.
What Happened?
The Giant Risers got off to an explosive start, winning the first quarter, 34-28, behind the hot shooting of Aljun Melecio and Von Pessumal. They continued that strong play well into the middle, getting contributions from Calvin Abueva and plenty of others to take a 92-81 lead.
But Rain or Shine fought back in the fourth and eventually got a big break in the last 8.5 seconds: Joshua Munzon fouling Anton Asistio taking a four-pointer with Titan up, 111-108. Asistio sank all four of his freebies to give the Elasto Painters the lead—their first since the score was 6-3 in their favor at the 10:28 mark of the first quarter. Abueva’s last-gasp shot for the win fell short, giving Rain or Shine the comeback win.
Who Stood Out?
Adrian Nocum had himself a game and helped Rain or Shine keep within striking distance, firing a team-high 24 points on top of 8 boards, 4 assists, and 3 steals. Leonard Santillan then came alive in the fourth quarter, where he scored 13 of his 21 to fuel Rain or Shine’s rally. Anton Asistio then finished the job with four massive free throws for the lead and the win.
Over at the Titan Ultra side, it was Calvin Abueva who starred once more, proving his stellar debut was not a fluke. In all, The Beast had 31 points, 18 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, and 1 block in a yeoman’s effort reminiscent of Prime Abueva. Aljun Melecio also had a great game, firing 21 points and helping the Giant Risers to a strong start.
3 Keys to the Game
- Joshua Munzon. Munzon had himself a solid all-around game, finishing with 15 points, 13 rebounds, and 8 assists. None of that mattered after his boneheaded foul on Asistio in the last 10 seconds of the game.
- Leonard Santillan. Santillan caught fire in the fourth, drilling four triples and finishing with 13 of Rain or Shine’s 31 points in the final 12 minutes. His timely treys helped the Elasto Painters eat away at that Titan Ultra lead.
- Anton Asistio. Not only did Asistio make that heads-up play in drawing Munzon’s foul, he also made the four pressure-packed freebies awarded to him.
Next Up for the PBA
The PBA will be back at the Ynares Center in Antipolo on Wednesday with a doubleheader featuring the Blackwater Bossing taking on the NLEX Road Warriors in the first game and the TNT Tropang 5G going up against the Meralco Bolts in the second game.
Blackwater vs. NLEX (5:15 p.m.)
Meralco vs. TNT (7:30 p.m.)
