Sta. Lucia Realtors

COACH Boyet Fernandez praised all his players from starters to bench, saying: “every single of them deserves a pat on the back.”

Fernandez had a very good reason for it.

Sta. Lucia Realty’s three-point shooting clicked at the right place and the right time to stop Rain or Shine, 109-100, on Friday for a back-to-back win in the PBA-Motolite Fiesta Conference at the Cuneta Astrodome.

The Sta. Lucia Realtors, winner of 2008 Philippine Cup, drained 14 triples against 10 of their opponent in the whole game to create a tie with the Elasto Paintmasters in the second place with identical 5-2 slate.

The Elasto Painters’ four-game winning streak also finally came to an end. Unbeaten San Miguel Beer stays in first place with 6-0 log.

“What can I say more? My bench players led by Bitoy, Paolo and Norman really stepped up tonight as well as Marlou and Cap,” said Fernandez. “They really played great to stop Jai Lewis and the rest of Rain or Shine.”

‘Valuable Performance’

Sta. Lucia 6-foot-6 reinforcement Anthony Johnson sustained his valuable performance by unloading 34 points on 3-of-6 shooting beyond the arc, 9-of-17 in the field and a perfect 7-of-7 attempts in the foul line.

“My teammates created great opportunity in defense which allow us to score and beat our opponent,” said Johnson, who also hauled down nine rebounds and swatted five enemy attempts. “Rain or Shine is a good team, so we spend a lot playing defense.”

Forward Kelly Williams, last year’s MVP, struggled for seven points and five rebounds, but Norman Gonzales came off the bench to score 17 points, including five three-point shots, and collect 10 rebounds for only 26 minutes.

Team captain Dennis Espino, who is still recovering from a minor injury, delivered 11 points before fouling out in the last seven minutes, while Marlou Aquino continued to dominate with 10 points along with five rebounds and game-high six blocks.

‘Walked away’

“We’ll take it. I’m still happy that we walked away with the win,” said Fernandez, referring to the 24-point second quarter advantage his troops blew.

Last year’s rookie of the year guard Ryan Reyes contributed with nine points and nine rebounds, while Nelbert Omolon had nine too and veteran Paolo Mendoza fired two triples for eight points and got six assists.

Sta. Lucia appeared to have the victory sealed when it coasted to a 44-24 advantage midway in the second quarter.

But Sta. Lucia’s offense suddenly went sour, going without a field goal in the last 3:54 of the third, enabling the Elasto Painters to complete a 16-0 run that cut Sta. Lucia’s lead to 49-41 at halftime.

Lewis, who will fly to the US Sunday for week-long break, recorded his fifth consecutive double-double with 23 points and 15 rebounds and Gabe Norwood produced 12 and 10 boards.

Jireh Ibanes scored 12 points and his third 3-pointer of the night shoved the Elasto Painters to a 57-56 lead with seven minutes to play in the third.

‘Driver’s seat’

The Elasto Painters didn’t take long in the driver’s seat, though.

Johnson made a technical free throw after Ibanes was whistled for flagrant foul-penalty one and Paolo Mendoza added two more before Espino knocked in a huge 3-point shot to cap an 8-0 run and put the Realtors ahead to stay, 63-57.

Espino and Aquino threw their defensive blanket against on Jai Lewis, as the Rain or Shine import struggled to gain his rhythm and eventually lost his effectiveness when he picked up his fourth foul with 7:57 remaining in the third quarter.

And the Elasto Paintmasters, who led by Solomon Mercado’s 27 points, could not find any antidote to the Realtors’ scoring rampage the rest of the way.

High-scoring guard Joseph Yeo, who averages nearly 17 points a game, did not suit up due to a left sprained ankle.

“My players showed a lot of character tonight and I’m happy with the way they played,” said team governor Buddy Encarnado.

Individual Scores:

Sta. Lucia 109 – Johnson 34,Gonzales 17, Espino 11, Aquino 10, Reyes 9, Omolon 9, Mendoza 8, Williams 7, Miranda 4, Coronel 0.

Rain or Shine 100 – Mercado 27, Lewis 23, Norwood 12, Ibanes 12, Reyes 9, Wainwright 8, Salangsang 4, Tang 3, Dulay 2, Arana 0, Andaya 0, Isip 0, Laure 0.

Quarter Scores: 28-20, 49-41, 77-68, 109-100.