MANILA — Despite a smaller frontline and injury to their prized acquisition, the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters dealt the mighty Petron Blaze Boosters a 102-86 drubbing in the 2012-2013 PBA Philippine Cup at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum Wednesday. Considered by many pundits as the strongest team in the conference bannered by the 6'10” and No. 1 draft Junemar Fajardo, Petron Blaze failed to measure up to expectations as the Elasto Painters, the reigning Governor's Cup champions, outhustled and outgunned their heavyweight rivals, particularly in the crucial fourth quarter. This the Elasto Painters did despite their prized rookie Chris Tiu suffering his old hamstring injury, forcing him to the sidelines after playing for just six minutes. Rain or Shine and Petron Blaze kept the game close until the second half when the Elasto Painters started pulling away. With Petron Blaze ahead 47-46 at the half, Rain or Shine raced ahead, 73-60, in the third quarter. In the final canto, the Boosters played catch-up, cutting the Elasto Painters' lead to three, 80-77. But the Elasto Painters ignited a run of their own to pad their lead to 14, 101-82, after clutch baskets by JR Quinahan and Jeff Chan, who top-scored for Rain or Shine with 20 points. Quinahan, Jervy Cruz, and Jireh Ibanes contributed 13 points apiece. Joseph Yao and Arwind Santos led Petron Blaze, scoring 16 points apiece. In the first match of the day, Ronald Tubid led all scorers and made the key baskets in the endgame to power the Barako Bull Energy Colas to a tightly fought 90-87 win against the Air21 Express. Presiding over the Barako Bull offense in the absence of Danny Seigle, Tubid tipped in a missed shot by Enrico Villanueva with 9.2 seconds left for the winning basket. Tubid finished with 19 points. With Millie Miller traded to GlobalPort, Tubid assumed the leadership role for the Energy Colas as acknowledged by Barako Bull coach Junel Baculi. Sean Anthony also played his heart out for his new team after being traded by the GlobalPort Batang Pier, knocking in 18 markers. “Yes, I am happy with the way Sean Anthony performed, but Tubid played the leadership role for the squad,” Baculi said. The Express had a chance to send the game into overtime, but KG Canaleta's three-point attempt clanked out out as time expired.
