By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
The Rain or Shine Elastopainters bagged their first win of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup after out-maneuvering the Hong Kong Eastern squad, 99-81, on December 4, 2024, at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
After losing their first game against the Meralco Bolts without the presence of their import, the Elastopainters finally played with their reinforcement, Deon Thompson, who immediately showed a huge impact with his all-around game and two-way efficiency.
The stellar debut of Thompson made the difference for Rain or Shine as the experienced import tallied a dominant double-double outing of 21 points, 15 rebounds, three assists, and three steals.
Rain or Shine quickly relied on Thompson’s ability to score in the shaded lane that put Hong Kong’s front-court pool in foul trouble.
Aside from his offensive prowess, Thompson’s court vision was also on full display after locating his open shooters when Hong Kong doubled-team him at the start of the second half.
After Thompson’s solid impact in the first half, the locals, led by versatile power forward Santi Santillan, stepped up for the Elastopainters.
Santillan led all locals in scoring, dropping 18 markers, backstopped by the big men duo of Keith Datu and Caelan Tiongson who each chipped in 10 points.
On the other hand, Hong Kong had to go to battle with an incomplete roster and relied on their import Cameron Clark who fired 30 points.
Clark helped Hong Kong inch close during their second-quarter rally but Rain or Shine’s collective effort in the second half deemed their hopes of any come-from-behind attempts.
Hong Kong got close to three points midway through the second, but a response from Thompson, Santillan, and Beau Belga in the final canto helped Rain or Shine secure the win.
The Elastopainters will look to nab their second consecutive win on December 10, 2024, against the San Miguel Beermen while Hong Kong looks to return to the winning column today, against the reigning Governor’s Cup kings, the TNT Tropang Giga.
