Bolts use team effort to rout Painters, forge decider
The past two months have been busy for Meralco as the Bolts juggled from one competition to another and back.
But the Bolts, who pushed the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters to the limit in their PBA Philippine Cup quarterfinal matchup with a 96-79 win on Saturday, now have a great shot at reaping the fruits of their labor if they could snatch a semis berth despite their predicament coming into the playoffs.
“We didn’t start the PBA season well, we didn’t start the EASL well,” said coach Luigi Trillo after their triumph at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. “So it would mean a lot [if we get through the semifinals].”
Meralco jumped to a big lead at the start and never looked back, though it shook off a potential Rain or Shine comeback in the fourth quarter to keep its All-Filipino campaign alive and now be the one applying pressure on the Elasto Painters in their decider slated next week.
The Bolts thus became the second lower-ranked team in these playoffs to take their series to a deciding game.
On Friday, crowd-darling Barangay Ginebra bamboozled Converge, 105-85, with the Gin Kings and the FiberXers clashing for the last time here on Sunday also at the Big Dome in Cubao.
And the Bolts will aim at another one on Monday when the two teams go for a spot in the best-of-seven semifinals against either the TNT Tropang 5G or Magnolia Hotshots.
TNT and Magnolia were playing at press time in the nightcap, with the Tropang 5G carrying a twice-to-beat bonus.
“We’re just happy that we’re able to play for this, so it’s not going to be easy,” said Trillo.
Chris Newsome, Cliff Hodge and CJ Cansino scored 14 points apiece, but it was Jansen Rios who wound up getting Player of the Game honors.
Rios finished with 12 points, five rebounds and four steals behind vital plays on both ends that kept Meralco’s lead intact.
There were a total of five players, four of them starters, who finished in twin digits for the well-oiled Bolts, while the Painters had just two in Adrian Nocum (17) and Gian Mamuyac with 16.
Rain or Shine cut a 34-point deficit down to almost 10 in the fourth, but Rios and Meralco made sure there won’t be a meltdown similar to or as catastrophic as their elimination round meeting.
That huge lead was made possible by hot early shooting as the Bolts missed just seven of their first 21 tries from the field and took the first quarter sitting on a 35-15 bubble.
After missing 12 of its first 16 shots in the same span, Rain or Shine was never able to really able to put a dent in that.
Meanwhile, Trillo said that winning the KO match on Monday would complete his family’s merry-making during these holidays.
“We’re halfway there, if we win on the 29th, then I can say it would be a big gift,” Trillo told the Inquirer later.
“Would I see it [semis spot] as a New Year’s gift, too? Well, I would love that.” —WITH A REPORT FROM ROMMEL R. FUERTES
