Rain or Shine uses hot second half to crush Ginebra

MANILA: Surely, the final score didn’t say that this one was another blowout for Rain or Shine. But it certainly looked as authoritative.
The Elasto Painters, three nights after posting a 51-point win, brought down another fancied side with conviction on Sunday night as Paul Lee and Arizona Reid starred in a sterling second half of a 117-108 win over Barangay Ginebra in the PBA Governors’ Cup eliminations.
Lee presided upon a third quarter breakaway for the Painters, and then joined hands with the hardworking Reid in the stretch to repulse the last of several Ginebra rallies as Rain or Shine won a third straight game to improve to 4-3 and put further pressure on the leaders.
The 6-foot Lee, who can lay claim to being one of the top three point guards in the league today, hit two three-pointers late in the third quarter and ushered the Painters to an 83-73 lead going into the payoff frame.
And when Ginebra — as has been its trademark — tried mounting comebacks one after the other, the former Rookie of the Year and Reid hit the baskets that broke the backs of the Kings, who lost for the second time in three games to drop to 4-2.
Lee scored 12 of his 24 points in the third period, and the last of his three triples — which came with 1:50 remaining to make it 111-102 — and Reid’s two free throws just eight seconds later, had majority of the sell-out crowd at the Alonte Sports Arena in Binan, Laguna hastily making for the exits.
Reid finished with 31 points, and coach Yeng Guiao had a third man in Jeff Chan also performing well, with the southpaw from Bacolod completing a three-point play and then connecting on a triple that had the Painters taking a second 17-point spread, 103-86, going into the final 5:47.
“We shot the ball well today, especially AZ (Reid), Paul (Lee) and Jeff (Chan),” Guiao said, minutes after the win. “It’s been a long time that they (the three clicking) have exploded offensively in the same game.”
The results of Sunday night’s games, including Barako Bull’s 112-98 plastering of Globalport, have certainly made for a tough final week of the elimination round.
Talk 'N Text continues to lead the pack with a 5-1 record, virtually assured of the first of four twice-to-beat privileges.
Ginebra’s loss made it a four-way tie for second place with San Mig Coffee, Air21 and San Miguel Beer. And since there won’t be playoffs to determine rankings instead of ties, the results of the remaining games will be very crucial.
Rain or Shine is at 4-3 and can have the pleasure of watching those tied for second spot spend each other out in the race for a Top Four seat. The Painters’ last assignments will be Meralco and then the Mixers.
Ginebra, meanwhile, will still be slugging it out with San Miguel Beer, Alaska and then the Tropang Texters, which is quite a formidable list of foes, especially now that Alaska has bounced back from a 123-72 loss to the Painters to clip the Beermen the other night.
The Express and the Mixers, incidentally, try to peel out of that second-placed group Monday night when they clash in the only game slated at 8 p.m. at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.
Barako Bull snapped a five-game losing streak with the victory over the Batang Pier. The Energy got 32 points, 24 rebounds and 10 assists from new import Allen Durham as they climbed to 2-5 and to a tie for eighth spot with idle Meralco.
Globalport lost a fifth straight game and is now alone in the cellar at 1-6, its chances of making it past this round getting bleaker by the day.
Only two teams will be eliminated.