Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings’ Japeth Aguilar goes for a jumper during their match against the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters in the 2015-2016 PBA Philippine Cup on Sunday night at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum. pba.inquirer.net
By ADRIAN STEWART CO
MANILA – Rain or Shine Elasto Painters negated Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings’ size advantage for a 94-86 win in the 2015-2016 PBA Philippine Cup on Sunday night at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
Negrense Jeff Chan led the way with 19 points, with 14 coming in the final frame, for the Painters, which tied San Miguel Beermen and Alaska Aces on top of the standings with a 6-1 slate.
Jericho Cruz added 16 markers, while rookie Maverick Ahanmisi contributed 13 for the Painters, which continued to play without star guard Paul Lee, who is recovering from a knee injury.
“Size is their biggest advantage but quickness is ours. We pushed the pace, and we’re lucky to make our shots,” said Painters head coach Yeng Guiao. “We’re now in a good place to be. We’re tied for the lead with a week break ahead of us.”
From a tight start, the Painters broke away in the second frame on triples by Gabe Norwood and Chris Tiu for a 35-22 lead. The Kings then leaned on Mark Caguioa to tie the count at 39-all at the half.
The Painters were aggressive to start the third quarter behind Ahanmisi, Cruz and Beau Belga to build a 59-48 lead after a Don Trollano triple. The Painters’ lead even went up to as high as 75-60 after back-to-back triples by Chan.
The Kings then made its last push in the final quarter to come to within 82-75 after a Sol Mercado layup. But back-to-back hits by Chan and Jewel Ponferrada sealed the victory for the Painters.
Japeth Aguilar finished with 22 points and nine rebounds, while Greg Slaughter added 19 for the 4-4 Kings, which was on a three-game winning run before the loss to the Painters./PN