The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters warmed themselves up ahead of a gigantic collision with the Alaska Aces as they trounced the Air21 Express, 94-83, last night in the 38th PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The Painters snapped the Express’ four-game win streak and in the process tied the Aces at the number one spot of the standings with their eighth win in 11 games.
Alaska and Rain or Shine will play each other on Friday in what could be a crucial battle for the leadership.
It was a closely fought match for a large part of the game but Rain or Shine caught Air21 napping on defense in the critical period of the fourth to break the game wide opne.
Tied at 68-all, the Painters detonated a 14-0 bomb to build a commanding 82-68 edge in the final 5:47.
The Express couldn’t recover from the slump and went on to taste their sixth loss in 11 games.
Seven-foot-three Import Bruno Sundov led all Rain or Shine scorers with 23 points although he was slowed down by foul trouble in the second half.
Sundov already had five fouls in the third period and was forced to sit.
The Rain or Shine locals, however, stepped up with Jeff Chan and Ryan Araña igniting the Painters’ telling run in the fourth. Chan finished with 16 points, while Araña had 13.
Air 21 import Michael Dunigan finished with a game-high 31 points but scored just three in the pivotal payoff period.