MANILA — In a battle of two teams both missing their key players, the Rain or Shine proved to be the steadier one as the Elasto Painters demolished the TNT KaTropa Texters by 32 points, 105-73, in the PBA Governors’ Cup Sunday night.
The Painters pounced on the Texters right from the start, racing to a 27-11 lead in the first quarter. They kept on piling the points against the beleaguered Texters until the final buzzer to post the biggest winning margin yet in the conference.
New import J’Nathan Bullock and Jericho Cruz spearheaded the Painters’ offense, with Bullock firing 20 points along with 14 rebounds, three assists, and one steal in 34 minutes. Cruz led ROS’ locals with 14 points, eight of them in the final period. He also collected five boards, five assists, and one steal in just 26 minutes.
Jewel Ponferrada added 12 points while new acquisition Mark Borboran (formerly of Phoenix), and James Yap chipped in 11 and 10 markers, respectively. ROS’ Beau Belga also played his part in the victory, collecting 10 boards as well as five points.
The Painters hardly missed the services of Gilas Pilipinas members Raymond Almazan and Gabe Norwood as they nailed their third straight win after losing their first two games.
On the other hand, the Texters badly missed the firepower of three stalwarts also playing for Gilas Pilipinas: Jayson Castro, Roger Pogoy, and Troy Rosario. As a result, TNT shot a dismal 28 percent from the field.
The loss spoiled the PBA debut of new TNT import Glen Rice Jr., the son of the famous NBA player of the same name, as the Texters fell to their second loss in four games. Rice led TNT with 19 points but converted just six of his 22 shots. He also finished with eight rebounds, four steals, and three assists, against five turnovers in 27 minutes. Rice replaced Michael Craig Jr.
Ranidel de Ocampo and rookie Levi Hernandez added 11 points apiece for TNT in a losing effort.
GlobalPort 102, Kia 90
The GlobalPort Batang Pier handily defeated Kia Picanto, 102-90, as import Murphy Holloway and Stanley Pringle ran the show in the absence of top gunner Terrence Romeo, who was still in Beirut, Lebanon playing for Gilas Pilipinas in the 2017 Fiba Asia Cup.
Holloway poured 29 points along with 18 boards, three assists, and three blocks to lead GlobalPort to its second win in four games. Pringle added 21 points, seven boards, and four assists.
Mac Baracael, newly acquired in a three-team trade with his former team NLEX and Phoenix, chipped in 13 markers and four rebounds in nearly 25 minutes off the bench.
Markeith Cummings led Kia with 37 points, six boards, two assists, and one steal, but his efforts were not enough to stop the Picanto from absorbing their seventh defeat in as many games to remain stuck at the bottom of the standings. Cummings had little local support with only Reden Celda scoring in double digits with 15 points.
Kia managed to cut GlobalPort’s lead down to 6 points, 90-96, with 54 ticks left. However, Holloway responded with a slam to take the fight out of the Picanto.
Games Wednesday: Alaska Aces (0-4) vs. Blackwater Elite (2-3) and Star Hotshots (3-0) vs. Phoenix Fuel Masters (2-4).
