MANILA – Rain or Shine Elasto Painters squandered an early lead before pulling off a 112-103 win over the Converge FiberXers in a do-or-die Game 3 of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup quarterfinals last night at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City.
After seeing their early double-digit lead turned to a 71-75 deficit, the Painters leaned on conversions from Deon Thompson and Adrian Nocum to tie the score at 77-all before they took an 80-77 on a Nocum triple.
The Painters rode on the momentum to start the fourth quarter with back-to-back triples from Beau Belga and consecutive conversions from Nocum to take a 91-80 lead before stretching it further to 94-82 on an Andrei Caracut triple.
The FiberXers threatened to within 97-102 after conversions from Alec Stockton, but a three-point play by Nocum and inside hits from Caracut and Caelan Tiongson sealed the win for the Painters.
Thompson had a near triple-double of 34 points, 12 rebounds, and seven assists to go with three blocks and two steals to be named Player of the Game as the Painters wrapped up the best-of-three quarterfinals series at 2-1.
Nocum contributed 25 markers, including three outside conversions, while Caracut and Jhonard Clarito contributed 14 and 11, respectively, as the Painters notched their third consecutive semifinals appearance.
The Painters will face the No. 2 seed TNT Tropang Giga in a best-of-seven semifinals series to be played after the FIBA break later this month.
“We are very happy, this is what we are trying to achieve, the past two conferences we reached the semifinals and it will be a pity if hindi kami makakapasok dito,” said Painters head coach Joseller “Yeng” Guiao after the game.
“This is also a validation of the hard work of the players, the togetherness and the camaraderie they have, it is also a testimony of the progress we have as a team,” he added.
Stockton finished with 26 points to lead the FiberXers, Cheick Diallo added a double-double of 19 points and 13 rebounds, while Justine Baltazar contributed 16 points and nine rebounds./PN
BOX SCORE:
RAIN OR SHINE 112 – Thompson 34, Nocum 25, Caracut 14, Clarito 11, Asistio 7, Belga 6, Datu 5, Tiongson 5, Santillan 4, Malonzo 1.
CONVERGE 103 – Stockton 26, Diallo 19, Baltazar 16, Arana 15, Winston 14, Racal 7, Heading 3, Andrade 3, Santos 0, Cabagnot 0, Caralipio 0, Delos Santos 0, Javillonar 0.
Quarterscores: 22-21, 50-45, 80-77, 112-103.
