By REYNALD MAGALLON
Mike Nieto and Gian Mamuyac showed the way as Rain or Shine clobbered Meralco, 113-96, to get back on the winning track in the 2022 PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the PhilSports Arena on Saturday, Oct. 22.
The Elasto Painters bucked a slow start before riding the hot hands of their young guns to arrest a two-game slide for a 3-3 record while adding to the woes of the Bolts who now absorbed their third straight loss, dropping them further to a 1-5 hole.
Nieto fired 21 points off the bench powered by five three-point connections while Mamuyac slashed his way through the Meralco defense to likewise finish with 21 points on a 7-of-13 clip from the field.
Steve Taylor Jr. also announced his return to the lineup after missing out on the team’s 110-91 loss to TNT with 22-point and 15-rebound show.
“Importante ‘yung larong ‘to sa’min. This is the start of a three game week for us so we play Meralco today, tapos sa Wednesday, Phoenix naman and then Saturday, again is I think it’s Magnolia. So it’s a big week for us. We need to get back after our slide, ‘yung dalawang talo namin,” said head coach Yeng Guiao.
Eager to end their own misery, the Bolts came out firing in the opening frame, building a 14-point lead, 32-18, late in the opening frame.
Mamuyac, though, lit the fire for ROS, dropping 15 of his output in the first half while Nieto, Taylor and Norbert Torres all found their groove in the huge second explosion where the Elasto Painters put up 31 points on the board while limiting the Bolts to just 16.
TNT WINS
Cameron Oliver and Mikey Williams provided the one-two punch as TNT bucked a slow start before holding off Blackwater in the second half to eke out a 108-98 victory.
The duo went on a scoring spree for the Tropang Giga who were looking to erase the bitter taste of their upset loss against NLEX the last time out. Oliver bounced back from a lackluster showing with 38 points and 10 rebounds while Williams fired 28 points built on six triples.
The Tropang Giga pulled away in the surprisingly tight contest during the third quarter when Oliver, Williams and RR Pogoy all connived in a back-breaking 15-1 rally that enabled them to build the first double-digit spread, 76-65.
More than the offensive display by the two, TNT head coach Chot Reyes was even more pleased with their defense after forcing the Bossing to a season-worst 31 turnovers.
The scores:
First Game
TNT 108 – Oliver 38, M.Williams 28, Pogoy 11, Oftana 11, K.Williams 7, Castro 6, Tungcab 5, Erram 2, Montalbo 0, Ganuelas-Rosser 0.
BLACKWATER 98 – Krutwig 25, Amer 16, Suerte 15, Ular 13, Banal 12, McCarthy 11, Jackson 4, Taha 2, Melton 0, Ebona 0, Sena 0, Sena 0, Go 0, Ayonayon 0, Publico 0.
Quarters: 24-27, 53-51, 83-71, 108-98.
Second game
RAIN OR SHINE 113 – Taylor Jr. 22, Mamuyac 21, Nieto 21, Caracut 10, Nambatac 10, Asistio 9, Torres 8, Belga 6, Santillan 4, Ponferrada 2, Borboran 0, Norwood 0.
MERALCO 96 – O’Bryant 30, Almazan 20, Quinto 19, Caram 14, Maliksi 7, Black 4, Banchero 2, Hodge 0, Pasaol 0, Pascual 0.
Quarters: 26-34, 57-50, 89-77, 113-96.
