For the second straight game, the absence of Greg Slaughter was not a problem for the Barangay Ginebra Kings as they took Game 1 of their best-of-three PBA Philippine Cup quarterfinal series against the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters with an 88-80 decision, Monday night at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The Kings featured a balanced attack from their starters and enough output from their bench as they took command of the game midway through the fourth quarter.
Rain or Shine was only down by a single point, 70-69, after a fast break layup converted by Gabe Norwood. However, the Kings unleashed a back-breaking 12-0 run capped by a Japeth Aguilar putback dunk and a Sol Mercado three for a commanding 82-69 lead with 4:56 left in the contest.
Late baskets from Ed Daquioag and Don Trollano gave Rain or Shine a shot at coming back as they sliced their deficit down to six, 84-78 with still 1:49 left but Joe Devance provided the finishing touches for Ginebra, scoring on a putback on the next possession. The Painters tried their luck from the three-point range but their prayers were not answered as Ginebra held on for the victory.
Mercado was named the Player of the Game with 13 points, three rebounds, and three assists. However, more than these numbers, Mercado said that it was their effort on the defensive end that allowed them to grab the victory.
"We just had to focus on the defensive end. They're a really good team and they shoot well and make a lot of threes so we had to focus on the details on getting out on their shooters," said Mercado in the post-game interview.
Coming into the playoffs, Rain or Shine was the best in the league in terms of three-pointers made with 11.8 connections from deep per ball game. Against the Kings in Game 1, they were limited to only eight conversions on 24% shooting from the three-point area.
"If we keep the score at 80, then it'll be better for us," added Mercado whose team will rely more on their defense as they are missing their biggest weapon on offense in Slaughter.
Knowing that no single player can fill the void left by Slaughter, Ginebra showed off balance with all of their starters scoring in double digits. LA Tenorio led them with 16 points while Devance had 15. Scottie Thompson and Japeth Aguilar both scored 14 points while combining for 24 rebounds and 11 assists.
It was a tight first half of play with Ginebra only leading by a single point, 44-43. It featured a battle between the starters of Ginebra and the bench of Rain or Shine. The Painters were led by Beau Belga in the first half with 11 points while Daquioag added 10 to carry the offense after their starting five took a break.
Ginebra, on the other end, relied on their usual suspects with Tenorio also reaching double digits with 11 while Aguilar chipped in eight points and five rebounds.
The Kings shot better from the field at 52% in the opening half as they moved the ball very week with 16 assists. However, the Painters kept the game close because they forced Ginebra to commit 12 turnovers leading to 14 points.
Belga led ROS with 17 points while Daquioag added 16. Although Raymond Almazan was in uniform for the Painters, it was like the big man was not even there for coach Caloy Garcia. The Gilas pool member failed to score in 12 minutes while committing four turnovers, forcing Garcia to bench him in the entire second half.
"Game 1 is always big in a best-of-three," closed Mercado. "It's huge but we have to treat Game 2 like a do-or-die game because that team is not going to just lay down," he added completely expecting a desperate ROS squad in their next meeting.
THE SCORES
BARANGAY GINEBRA 88 - Tenorio 16, Devance 15, Thompson 14, J. Aguilar 14, Mercado 13, Ferrer 5, Cruz 4, Mariano 4, Caguioa 2, R. Aguilar 0.
RAIN OR SHINE 80 - Belga 17, Daquioag 15, Ahanmisi 10, Ponferada 9, Nambatac 8, Trollano 6, Washington 5, Norwood 4, Tiu 3, Maiquez 2, Borboran 0, Almazan 0.
Quarterscores: 21-23, 44-43, 68-64, 88-80.
EXTRA DRIBBLES
Greg Slaughter isn't expected to play in the quarterfinals as he's still nursing a sprained ankle.
James Yap will be out of commission for the entire conference with a pulled hamstring.
NEXT GAME
Game 2 - March 7, Wednesday at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum