By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
The Rain or Shine Elastopainters remained undefeated in the PBA’s 46th season after outlasting the Meralco Bolts, 85-72, and improved their record to 3-0.
Trailing 13-18 after the end of the first quarter, the Elastopainters suddenly caught fire and outscored the Bolts 29-17 in the second quarter.
Rain or Shine’s scoring avalanche to end the first half gave them the much-needed momentum as the next two quarters began.
Through a collective effort, the Elastopainters continued their hot-shooting in the field and put on a strong defensive hold that limited Meralco’s perimeter offense, their bread and butter in their first two wins against San Miguel and the NorthPort Batang Pier.
Jayvee Mocon led the attack for the Elastopainters and finished the ball game with 18 points, six rebounds, and six assists while mainstay veteran center Beau Belga was efficient from the field with his double-double outing of 17 points and 10 rebounds.
Meanwhile, after a 2-0 start in the tournament, Meralco’s offense suddenly went stagnant as Chris Newsome’s 13 points and Raymond Almazan’s 10 were the only double-digit production from the team.
“I’m really grateful that our best players set the standard from day one. I’ve said it before, when your best players are your hardest workers, your culture gets set organically,” said Rain or Shine head coach Chris Gavina.