San Miguel, TNT hold on for victories over Rain Or Shine, Meralco

MANILA, Philippines－ The San Miguel Beermen returned to winning ways after stopping the streaking Rain Or Shine Elasto Painters, 103-96, in the 2017 PBA Governors’ Cup on Wednesday, September 6 at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.

Down by as much as 17, the Elasto Painters mustered a fightback in the second half as they camne within 6, 84-90, following a Gabe Norwood triple.

But the Beermen, who had lost back-to-back games prior to this match-up, denied the rally as Chris Ross buried a counter trey to keep Rain or Shine at bay in the payoff period. 

Ross finished with a game-high 27 markers on 5-of-8 shooting from beyond the arc, while Marcio Lassiter and Arwind Santos had 22 and 18, respectively. 

J’Nathan Bullock meanwhile pitched in 22 points along with 13 rebounds and 7 assists for Rain Or Shine, which drops one after winning 3 straight games. 

Both teams are now tied in the middle of the pack with a 4-3 record. 

Earlier in the day, the TNT KaTropa also found their way back to the win column when they escaped the Meralco Bolts, 113-107, also at the Big Dome. 

Looking to bounce back from a loss against the GlobalPort Batang Pier last Friday, the KaTropa wasted no time in getting on the board as they hopped on a comfortable 17-point advantage, 63-46, at the half. 

The Bolts would answer right back in the next two frames, and they ultimately cut the deficit,107-105, with 1:42 remaining on the clock. But the KaTropa had a counter for whatever rally their foes attempted to spark, and they clinged to a 6-point victory－ their 5th overall in the season-ending conference. 

Jayson Castro led the charge for the now 5-3 KaTropa with 27 points on 8-of-12 shooting, while Glen Rice Jr delivered a team-high 32 points coupled with 11 boards. 

Reigning Best Import Allen Durham posted a double-double of 39 points and 24 boards in the Bolts’ second loss in 7 games. 

Baser Amer was the only other Meralco player in double digits as he finished with 21 markers to go with 5 rebounds and 4 dimes. – Rappler.com