There is no stopping Rain or Shine now as the Elasto Painters cruised to five straight wins against NorthPort after dropping their first four assignments in the PBA Season 48 Philippine Cup.
Beau Belga continued to be a reliable force for Rain or Shine as he dropped a career-high 28 points to help the Elasto Painters fend off NorthPort, 115-105, and collect its fifth straight win in the PBA Season 48 Philippine Cup at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Malate on Wednesday, April 17.
The vetetan slotman, who has stepped up big time since big man Keith Datu went down with an MCL injury a few weeks ago, sustained his fine form as he nearly registered another triple-double outing after also chalking up 13 rebounds and seven assists.
As Belga put up one stellar performance after another, Rain or Shine rose to a 5-4 mark while dragging the Batang Pier to their third straight loss at 4-4.
[RELATED STORY: PBA: Beau Belga a little extra in Rain or Shine’s resurgence in Philippine Cup]
“Natutuwa kami kasi consistent si Beau. Kailangan niyang mag-double time. Kulang kami sa malaki,” Elasto Painters coach Yeng Guiao said. “Pero pinupunuan naman ni Beau. Marami naman siyang ipampupuno kaya kaya niya namang punuin.”
But Belga would not hog the credit.
He was even the first to say it was a collective effort that shoved the team to the middle of the pack in the standings. In fact, it was Adrian Nocum finally breaking out of a slump and Jhonard Clarito stepping up that put the finishing touches to the victory.
After Belga gave Rain or Shine a 102-91 lead with still 4:09 to go in the match, Nocum and Clarito took care of business for the Elasto Painters, who had an answer for every NorthPort run.
As Zav Lucero and Allyn Bulanadi pulled the Batang Pier to within 10, 110-100, with 73 ticks left to play, Nocum drove left and made the finger roll against Lucero for the dagger.
NorthPort, which ran into trouble early after falling to a 3-22 hole in the opening period, just could not really do much after that.
Clarito finished with 17 points and seven rebounds while Nocum delivered 16 points. Mark Borboran added 12 markers.
“It’s a team effort for us. Nairaos namin ang mga ball games na lahat kami, nagtutulungan,” said Belga.
The win spoiled a career-high 29-point performance by Lucero, who also logged seven rebounds and two steals while turning the ball over only once in almost 30 minutes of play.
Bulanadi also had a career night, posting 29 points on 11-of-18 shooting from the field.
The Scores:
RAIN OR SHINE 115 – Belga 28, Clarito 17, Nocum 16, Borboran 12, Caracut 8, Asistio 7, Mamuyac 6, Santillan 5, Ildefonso 5, Belo 5, Demusis 4, Paredes 2.
NORTHPORT 105 – Lucero 29, Bulanadi 26, Rosales 12, Tolentino 11, Flores 9, Amores 8, Munzon 6, Navarro 4, Paraiso 0, Yu 0, Zamar 0, Cuntapay 0, Adamos 0.
Quarterscores: 24-14, 48-38, 81-72, 115-105