Philippine basketball

Rain or Shine takes over in 4th to keep NLEX winless in PBA On Tour

Delfin Dioquino

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Rain or Shine takes over in 4th to keep NLEX winless in PBA On Tour

DEADLY DUO. Rey Nambatac and Anton Asistio deliver the goods late for Rain or Shine.

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Rey Nambatac and Anton Asistio drop 14 points each in the fourth quarter as Rain or Shine erupts for 42 points in the period to break away from NLEX

MANILA, Philippines – Rain or Shine shot the lights out in the fourth quarter and turned a close contest against NLEX into a blowout, 117-93, in the PBA On Tour at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig on Friday, May 26.

Rey Nambatac and Anton Asistio caught fire late and each scored 22 points for the Elasto Painters, who erupted for 42 points in the final frame after ending the third period up by just a point, 75-74.

Asistio and Nambatac dropped 14 points apiece in the fourth quarter as they outscored the entire Road Warriors in the period to lead Rain or Shine to a triumphant debut in the preseason tournament.

NLEX remained within striking distance midway through the last salvo, 83-94, before Nambatac and Asistio conspired for a 23-10 run to end the game.

Jewel Ponferada delivered 10 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 blocks, Santi Santillan put up 9 points, 10 rebounds, and 2 blocks, while seldom-used Jhonard Clarito chimed in 9 points, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals.

Punished by the Elasto Painters a month ago for playing in unsanctioned games, Beau Belga supplied 7 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists, and 2 blocks in the win.

Rain or Shine head coach Yeng Guiao said the team is taking the PBA On Tour tiff seriously as an avenue to improve after the Elasto Painters failed to make the playoffs of the Governors’ Cup, finishing at 10th with a 2-9 record.

“We’re treating this as a learning experience. At the same time, we want to develop our competitive spirit,” said Guiao in a mix of Filipino and English.

“The games are important to us because we feel this is the way for us to improve, to try new things, to experiment, to validate our system.”

Bong Galanza tallied 22 points for the Road Warriors, who remained winless and dropped to 0-2 after bowing to Blackwater in the PBA On Tour opener last May 21.

NLEX, though, is not at full strength as it played without Kevin Alas, Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser, Tony Semerad, and Philip Paniamogan.

Kris Rosales fired 16 points in the loss, while Dominick Fajardo – elevated from the Road Warriors’ PBA 3×3 team Cavitex Braves – made the most out of his opportunity by churning out 15 points and 5 rebounds.

The Scores

Rain or Shine 117—Asistio 22, Nambatac 22, Ponferada 10, Ildefonso 9, Clarito 9, Santillan 9, Borboran 8, Mamuyac 7, Belga 7, Caracut 5, Demusis 5, Norwood 4.

NLEX 93—Galanza 22, Rosales 16, Fajardo 15, Doliguez 11, Trollano 8, Miranda 6, Pascual 6, Celda 4, Gabo 4, Rangel 1.

Quarters: 22-24, 48-51, 75-74, 117-93. – Rappler.com

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Delfin Dioquino

Delfin Dioquino dreamt of being a PBA player, but he did not have the skills to make it. So he pursued the next best thing to being an athlete – to write about them. He took up journalism at the University of Santo Tomas and joined Rappler as soon as he graduated in 2017.