ROS bags Commissioner’s Cup

Jay R. Gotera MANILA — The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters ended a four-year wait for glory as they finished off the Alaska Aces, 109-92, in Game 6 of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals Wednesday night. The Painters thus won the Finals series, 4-2, winning only their second championship in the league after capturing the 2012 Governors’ Cup title. After erecting a commanding 3-0 lead in the series but failing to knock out the Aces in their next two games, the Painters made sure there would be no need for a deciding Game 7 as they imposed their might right at the start of the game with their impeccable outside shooting. The Painters drilled 15 three-pointers to match the record for most triples by a team in a game in the finals. Jericho Cruz and Paul Lee were the heroes of the game for ROS as they combined for 41 points. Lee started like a house on fire, banging in his team’s last 15 points in the first quarter alone before re-igniting in the fourth period. It was another bitter lost for Aces as they finished as runners-up for the third straight and fourth over the last five conferences. Lee fired 15 straight points in the first quarter alone to give ROS a 14-point lead. He finished with 20 markers, earning him the Finals MVP honors. The individual honor could have also gone to Cruz who also dazzled the crowd with his booming three-pointers. He finished with a team-high 21 points on top of five boards in 36 minutes. Raymond Almazan and JR Quinahan added 15 and 14 markers, respectively for ROS. On Alaska’s side, Calvin Abueva, the Best Player of the Conference, tried his best to foil ROS anew but came up short despite finishing with a team-high 26 points and eight boards. Abueva could have scored more but failed to finish the game, fouling out after playing for just 25 minutes. Rookie Kevin Racal also played his heart out for Alaska, finishing with 15 points, including back-to-back three-pointers that allowed the Aces to cut the Painters’ halftime lead to just 59-49. RJ Jazul and import Rob Dozier added 14 and 11 markers, respectively.