#PBA2015 Philippine Cup Playoffs Roundup: December 18, 2014

The 2014 PBA Philippine Cup Playoffs semifinals kicked off last night with the Alaska Aces rallying in the second half to upend second-seeded Rain or Shine and gain an important 1-0 lead in their best-of-seven series.

Sonny Thoss came up big as the Aces trumped the Painters in Game 1.

Game Capsules (adapted from InterAKTV):

ALASKA ACES over RAIN OR SHINE ELASTO-PAINTERS, 87-80

Box Scores.

The Alaska Aces drew first blood in their PBA Philippine Cup semifinal series against Rain or Shine after coming back from 17 points down to win 87-80 in Game One of their best-of-seven series on Thursday at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.

Rain or Shine looked to be firmly in control in this one, leading by as many as 17 points, 34-17, in the first half and carrying a slim 3-point lead at the break. The Aces, however, woke up in the third period, outscoring the Painters, 21-15, and then made the big buckets in the final canto to complete their stirring comeback victory. Alaska then put together a strong finishing kick, going on a 12-0 run late in the fourth quarter to seal the win.

Alaska dominated the rebounding, 58-46, which compensated for their 18 turnovers and 39% FG shooting.

Sonny Thoss posted 16 points and 9 rebounds to lead the winners, while JVee Casio added 16. Calvin Abueva also came up big, scoring half of the team’s points in the Aces’ big fourth quarter run. He finished with 14 points and 14 boards in another double-double performance.

On the other end, Jeff Chan paced ROS with 17 markers on 6/10 FG shooting, while Beau Belga and Raymond Almazan added 11 and 10 respectively. Gilas mainstays Paul Lee and Gabe Norwood struggled in this one, combining for just 13 points on 6/22 shooting from the floor.

Line of the Game: Calvin Abueva - 14pts, 14rebs, 5asts, 1stl, 1blk.