Rain or Shine thwarts Ginebra rally in 84-83 thriller

Jireh Ibanes and Willy WilsonRain or Shine Elasto Painters thumped the repeated rallies of Barangay Ginebra and held on for an 84-83 squeaker Sunday night at the KFC-PBA Fiesta Cup at the Araneta Coliseum.

Jireh Ibanes showed his best game yet this season with 15 points and 6 rebounds, and had a key steal on Rudy Hatfield in the closing seconds that sealed the win for the Elasto Painters.

With the win, Rain or Shine now moved to 6-5, and halted the 4-game winning streak of the Kings to drop 8-5.

“We were just lucky today. I just told the players, if we want to go far, we have to beat the teams in front of us like B-Meg, Alaska and Ginebra,” said Elasto Painters head coach Caly Garcia who also got 15 markers from Sol Mercado.

Gabe Norwood added 13 points while Jai Lewis chipped in 12 and 18 boards in a foul-plagued 33 minutes of action.

Ginebra came close at 81-82 on Mildon Ambres' triple, but Ibanes stole the ball from Mark Caguioa, and headed for a lay-up to put the Painters ahead by 3, 84-81.

Caguioa followed up the missed jumper of Jayjay Helterbrand, 83-84, and the Kings had the chance to steal the game after Rain or Shine failed to convert in its next play with 12.7 ticks left.

But Ambres' three-point attempt was short. Hatfield almost secured the offensive board, but Ibanes sneaked in from behind and stole the leather, getting fouled with 1.8 seconds.

Ibanes muffed both free throws allowing the Kings to have a final shot, but Willie Miller also missed the target.

Caguioa led Ginebra with 28 points, while Ambres added 20 points and 16 rebounds. - www.abs-cbnnews.com

Scores:

Rain or Shine 84 - Ibanes 15, Mercado 15, Norwood 13, Lewis 12, Arana 9, Tang 6, Chan 6, Reyes 5, Laure 3, Cruz 0, Hrabak 0, Telan 0.

Brgy. Ginebra 83 - Caguioa 28, Ambres 20, Tubid 12, Miller 10, Wilson 3, Hatfield 3, De Ocampo 3, Mamaril 2, Helterbrand 2, Villanueva 0.

Quarters: 25-18, 49-40, 69-63, 84-83