Defense delivers as Elasto Painters stay alive in semis
At A Glance
- Rain or Shine leaned on its defense against TNT to keep its finals hopes alive following a Game 5 semifinal victory in their PBA Philippine Cup.
Gian Mamuyac delivers for Rain or Shine. (PBA Images)
By ANGELO CAPARAS, Intern
Rain or Shine leaned on its defense against TNT to keep its finals hopes alive following a Game 5 semifinal victory in their PBA Philippine Cup.
The Elasto Painters turned up the pressure on both ends, racking up 10 steals and forcing the Tropang Giga into 19 turnovers en route to a convincing 113–97 victory that trimmed TNT’s series lead to 3–2 in the best-of-seven showdown.
“It was really the defense that we were able to play,” said ROS coach Yeng Guiao.
“Because in the first half, we found no way to contain Calvin [Oftana]. Talagang yung shooting nya, maganda yung offense nya. We were just waiting for him to get tired a little bid,” he added.
Oftana came out smoking in the first half, scoring 21 points for TNT. But ROS clamped down after the break, holding him to just two points over the final two quarters.
“That’s [the] time we were able to break away, dun sa third quarter. Also, we were able to sustain our pace,” said Guiao.
On the offensive end, Gian Mamuyac stepped up for ROS, finishing with 22 points to redeem himself after back-to-back quiet games with just seven and five points.
He credited his teammates for supporting him following a crucial Game 2 foul on Oftana, which helped TNT steal the win.
“Buong team, buong organization — after that play, lahat sumuporta naman sa’kin. Sabi nga nila, series naman ’to, race-to-four. So ayun, buong suporta naman ang team — napadali rin yung pag-move on ko,” Mamuyac said.