The Lee-thal
Weapon.
It’s a
pretty-sounding pun for Rain or Shine sophomore Paul Lee, but it’s also deeply
appropriate.
Just ask the
Ginebra Gin Kings, who got bounced off the contenders’ list when they lost to
the Elasto-Painters yesterday, 102-89.
It was
actually a tight game for about 24 minutes. The Kings were successful in doing
two critical things: limiting ROS super sniper Jeff Chan, who finished with
just 5 points on 1-of-9 shooting, and outrebounding the smaller, but beefier,
ROS frontline. As a result, the game was deadlocked, 47-all, at halftime.
And then the
third quarter happened.
The Painters
outscored the Kings by a dozen points in this period. They scored from pretty much
everywhere, and they forced several miscues from the Kings. This was enough for
coach Yeng Guiao’s wards to take the driver’s seat, something they never
relinquished.
Ginebra
coach Siot Tiangquincen actually enjoyed brilliant games from LA Tenorio and
center Billi Mamaril. Tenorio ended up with 20 markers, 7 boards, and 3 dimes,
while Mamaril registered a career game – 20 points, 10 rebounds, and 6 blocks!
Their efforts were wasted, however, as the Kings turned the ball over a total
of 16 times and shot like crap from the line – just 43% (9-of-21).
The Painters
were quick to pounce on these errors, and they made the Kings pay big time. Lee
led the way with 25 points on 8-of-11 FG shooting, including 4-of-6 from beyond
the arc. The most impressive of these three-bombs was a step back fadeaway over
Rudy Hatfield late in the fourth. Hitting that shot basically sealed the deal
and sent the Kings packing.
 |
| Paul Lee put on a shooting clinic as the Painters eliminated the Gin Kings. |
It also
helped that Lee got ample support, especially from the all-around performance
of Gabe Norwood, who finished with 21 points, 6 assists, 4 rebounds, 2 steals, and
1 block while shooting 2-of-3 from rainbow land. Big men Jervy Cruz, Beau Belga,
and Ronnie Matias also did well, combining for 32 points, 18 rebounds, and 8
assists.
The Painters
face a tough test in the semifinals against the highly-touted second seeds –
the San Mig Coffee Mixers, whom the Painters beat in the Governors’ Cup Finals
several months ago (the Mixers still carried the name B-Meg Llamados then). Needless
to say, this series should be extremely fun to watch!
Game Recaps:
RAIN OR SHINE
ELASTO-PAINTERS over BGY. GINEBRA GIN KINGS, 102-89
In the end,
it was the Lethal Weapon who shot down Barangay Ginebra San Miguel’s Philippine
Cup dreams.
Paul Lee
scored 25 points in just 26 minutes to lead Rain or Shine to a masterful 102-89
victory over the Gin Kings in the deciding Game Three of their quarterfinals
series Sunday at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.
“We had to
do it the hard way. We took the longer route but made our destination. Medyo
tumagal lang,” said Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao.
“We learned
a lot of things in our setback (in Game Two).”
The victory
gave the Elasto Painters the final ticket to the semifinals of the tournament.
Rain or Shine faces San Mig Coffee in a rematch of last season’s Governors’ Cup
finals.
Lee scored
14 points in a third quarter that saw a 47-all halftime tie turn into a 76-64
lead for the Elasto Painters.
In contrast
to Game Two when Rain or Shine turned cold from beyond the arc, the Elasto
Painters shot the lights out from the three-point line.
“We were
kinda suprised by the zone they threw at us in Game Two,” said Guiao. The
Elasto Painters made 9-of-22 from three-point range (41 percent) despite the
continuing cold shooting of top gun Jeff Chan, who missed all five of his
attempts from distance.
“Yun ang
prinaktis namin. Paul Lee went to work in the third quarter.”
Gabe Norwood
helped pick up the slack for the Elasto Painters, posting 21 points, six
assists, and two steals. That included a difficult two-hand alleyoop jam over
Rudy Hatfield on Lee’s pass as part of the surge that saw Rain or Shine take a
21-point lead, 72-51, with four minutes left in the third quarter.
“(Ronnie)
Matias hit his shots, Paul hit his shots, Gabe hit some shots. That’s the
design of this team. When one player on a slump, others will step up,” said
Guiao.
The closest
Ginebra could get was at 79-72 on Mark Caguioa’s split from the foul line, but
the Elasto Painters hit the needed free throws to deny the Gin Kings of another
comeback.
The loss
spoiled a career game from Billy Mamaril, who had 20 points, 10 rebounds, and
six blocks. LA Tenorio added 20 points for Ginebra, which was eliminated from
Philippine Cup by Rain or Shine for the second straight year.
ROS 102 – Lee 25, Norwood 21, Cruz 12,
Belga 11, Matias 9, Tiu 7, Rodriguez 6, Quinahan 6, Chan 5, Tang 0, Arana 0.
GIN 89 – Tenorio 20, Mamaril 20,
Caguioa 14, Maierhofer 11, Helterbrand 9, Ellis 4, Wilson 4, Hatfield 4, Taha
3, Labagala 0, Espiritu 0.
QS: 27-27, 47-47, 76-64, 102-89
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| Gabe Norwood punctuates the win with an emphatic jam in the fourth. |
 |
| LA Tenorio carried the losing cause for the Gin Kings. |
 |
| Coach Yeng Guiao is all smiles as the Painters advance to the next round against a familiar foe. |
Source: Unless otherwise specified, game
recaps were compressed and compiled from InterAKTV. (Writing credit to Rey
Joble.)
Images: All images are from InterAKTV.
(Photo credit to Paolo Papa)
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