MANILA – Reginald Johnson drained the go-ahead free throw as Rain or Shine Elasto Painters escaped with a 98-97 win over NLEX Road Warriors in the 2018 PBA Commissioner’s Cup last night at the Ynares Center in Antipolo City.
With the scores tied 97-all, Johnson split his two free throws to give Painters a 98-97 lead before completing the win with a steal by Chris Tiu on Road Warriors’ guard Juan Miguel Tiongson.
In the first game, GlobalPort Batang Pier overhauled a double-digit deficit to score 117-106 over the struggling Blackwater Elite for its second victory in three outings.
Johnson finished the match with double-double 27 points and 14 rebounds for Painters (3-0) currently under head coach Carlos Garcia.
Tiu and Raymond Almazan finished with 12 points apiece while Anthony Washington had 10 points.
Trailing by as much as 9 points in the third period, Painters relied on inside conversions by Johnson and Almazan to trim the deficit to 72-77 heading into the fourth quarter.
It was a seesaw battle for both teams in the final frame with Painters getting a huge lift from Washington, who made 3 for Painters to surge 97-95. Road Warriors forced a deadlock on a reverse basket by Arnett Moultrie.
Moultrie debuted with double-double 24 points and 17 rebounds while Ilonggo rookie Kiefer Ravena and JR Quiñahan contributed 23 markers apiece for Road Warriors (0-2).
Earlier Batang Pier was down by as much as 12 points before making its move in the second period behind Sean Anthony and Stanley Pringle to come to within 62-64. Consecutive points from Pringle and Malcolm White allowed Batang Pier to take its largest lead 99-81.
Elite countered with a huge run and managed to come to as close as 100-105 on a Rey Mark Belo triple but 3 straight conversions from Anthony increased Batang Pier’s lead 117-104.
Anthony fell short of a triple-double with 29 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists while White chipped in 28 markers and Pringle contributed 26 points for Batang Pier (2-1), which tied with Columbian Dyip./PN
