Rain or Shine ends unbeaten Magnolia run; Brondial dominates in San Miguel blowout

MANILA, Philippines, May 19 ------ An explosive start allowed Rain or Shine to become the first team to beat Magnolia in the PBA Philippine Cup as it scored a 119-105 victory at the Ynares Center in Montalban, Rizal. The Elasto Painters’ raced to a commanding 37-21 lead at the end of the opening quarter and rolled the rest of the way to claim their fourth win in six games and dealt the Hotshots their first loss after six consecutive triumphs. 

Adrian Nocum paced Rain or Shine with 20 points to go with 7 assists and 3 rebounds, while Santi Santillan delivered a double-double of 17 points and 13 rebounds with 3 blocks. Jhonard Clarito made his presence felt off the bench with 14 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists, Felix Lemetti chimed in 11 points, 5 assists, and 3 rebounds, while Keith Datu supplied 10 points, 5 rebounds, and 2 steals. 

Lemetti and Beau Belga set the tone for the Elasto Painters as they each scored 7 points in the first quarter. Although Magnolia fought back and got within 48-52 behind a Paul Lee four-pointer midway through the second period, Rain or Shine pulled away for good and built a 92-71 lead off a Jhonard Clarito triple to end the third frame. 

Zavier Lucero finished with 17 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 blocks for the Hotshots, whose lose marked the first time they failed to contain their opponents under 100 points. Magnolia held foes to an average of 89.2 points in its first six games. Ian Sangalang and Mark Barroca contributed 15 points each in the loss as Paul Lee, coming off a 27-point explosion in a blowout of defending champion Meralco last May 14, got limited to just 7 points in only over 18 minutes. 

Earlier, Rodney Brondial turned in one of the finest performances of his PBA career to help steer San Miguel to a 128-89 demolition of Terrafirma. Brondial registered a monster double-double of 16 points and a career-high 22 rebounds as the Beermen won back-to-back games and hiked their record to 5-2. CJ Perez and Mo Tautuaa led eight San Miguel players in double-figure scoring with 17 points each, while June Mar Fajardo posted 12 points and 12 rebounds. Mark Nonoy fired 24 points in another lopsided loss for the hapless Dyip, who were crushed by at least 30 points for the fifth time this conference and fell 1-7. 

The Scores 

First game 

San Miguel 128 – Perez 17, Tautuaa 17, Brondial 16, Tiongson 13, Fajardo 12, Trollano 12, Cruz 11, Teng 8, Calma 8, Rosales 7, Lassiter 4, Cahilig 3, Ross 0. 

Terrafirma 89 – Nonoy 24, Pringle 17, Sangalang 10, Zaldivar 9, Paraiso 7, Catapusan 7, Ramos 5, Melecio 5, Olivario 3, Ferrer 2, Hernandez 0, Hanapi 0. 

Quarters: 28-21, 53-37, 95-64, 128-89. 

Second game 

Rain or Shine 119 – Nocum 20, Santillan 17, Clarito 14, Lemetti 11, Datu 10, Mamuyac 9, Malonzo 8, Tiongson 8, Caracut 7, Belga 7, Ildefonso 5, Norwood 3. 

Magnolia 105 – Lucero 17, Barroca 15, Sangalang 15, Mendoza 11, Lee 7, Ahanmisi 7, Lastimosa 6, Abueva 5, Eriobu 5, Dela Rosa 4, Escoto 3, Dionsio 2, Alfaro 2, Laput 2, Reavis 0. 

Quarters: 37-21, 62-52, 92-71, 119-105. 

Source: rappler.com