The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters took a 1-0 lead over Barangay Ginebra San Miguel in their PBA Commissioner’s Cup semifinals series with a pulsating 115-111 victory at the Ynares Center in Antipolo.
What Happened?
Rain or Shine seemed to carry the momentum of their breakthrough win over the San Miguel Beermen into this game as it started strong, racing ahead to a 26-17 lead in the opening frame. Jaylen Johnson started out hot before Adrian Nocum sparked the Elasto Painters off the bench with six straight points to end the first. The Elasto Painters then pushed their lead to as much as 13, 34-21, on a Johnson triple before Ginebra ended the first half on a 27-8 run to take a 49-42 lead into halftime.
Johnson and company didn’t back down, though, cutting into that lead in the third thanks mostly to some inspired play from Jhonard Clarito, who fired 13 third-quarter points. Ginebra next scored the first seven points of the final frame to push the lead to 84-74. But Rain or Shine fought back again behind Johnson, Clarito, and Gian Mamuyac, eventually retaking the lead at 95-94. The two teams exchanged leads and deadlocks in the ensuing possessions before RJ Abarrientos hit a three to put the barangay up, 102-97, with 3:55 left.
Mamuyac then converted a three-point play to cut that lead to 102-100 before finding Mike Malonzo for a layup. Abarrientos fired another triple to make it 107-102, and Johnson answered with a four-pointer in transition to move Rain or Shine within 107-106. Nocum then hit two freebies to take back the lead before Clarito hit a dagger corner trey to give the Elasto Painters a 111-107 cushion. A late four-pointer from Scottie Thompson gave Ginebra a new lease on life with seconds left, but the barangay couldn’t muster a miracle in the end.
Who Stood Out?
Johnson, Clarito, and Mamuyac took over for Rain or Shine. Johnson, in particular, did it all game long, finishing with a conference-best 40 points on 6-for-11 from distance, on top of 19 caroms and 3 assists. Clarito, on the other hand, finished with 25 big points, including 13 in the third and that dagger three in the fourth. Finally, Mamuyac had 17 points while also making a big jumper down the stretch and a huge block on Abarrientos.
Over at Ginebra, the Big Three of Justin Brownlee, RJ Abarrientos, and Scottie Thompson carried the load. Brownlee had 32 points but lost steam in the end, while Abarrientos fired 21. Thompson put up 17 points and 7 rebounds.
3 Keys to the Game
- Resilience. Rain or Shine didn’t just take Ginebra’s haymakers. It fought back every time. That much was evident in the fourth as the Elasto Painters found ways to come back every time the barangay looked poised to seize control. In the end, Mamuyac and Clarito dealt the daggers that won Game 1.
- Offensive rebounds. The Elasto Painters grabbed 21 offensive rebounds, with Johnson alone pulling down 7. That resulted in Rain or Shine getting a 21-18 advantage in second-chance points. More importantly, it meant more possessions for Yeng Guiao’s wards and more opportunities to stretch that Ginebra defense thin.
- Defense. Rain or Shine may have given up 111 points, but the defense the Elasto Painters played down the stretch proved to be the difference. Aside from Mamuyac’s massive rejection of Abarrientos, Johnson also clamped down on Brownlee in the endgame, forcing him to give the ball up instead of taking over himself.
Next Up for the PBA
Friday, May 22, 2026 | Mall of Asia Arena
Barangay Ginebra San Miguel vs. Rain or Shine Elasto Painters (5:15 p.m.)
TNT Tropang 5G vs. Meralco Bolts (7:30 p.m.)
