Painters aim for 2nd straight win vs skidding Bolts

A fitting follow-up to a fitting win the last time. Rain or Shine hopes to achieve that when it battles skidding Meralco on Sunday in the PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum. The encounter comes shortly before crowd favorite Barangay Ginebra goes up against defending champion Derby Ace in the main game at 6:30 p.m. The Elasto Painters are coming off a stunning 95-93 win over erstwhile solo leader Talk ‘N Text, which Sol Mercado made possible by nailing down a top-of-the-key jumper with 1.5 seconds left on Wednesday. Coach Caloy Garcia said his team will definitely ride the momentum of that upset victory. “We’ll carry the momentum of our last win to build up more confidence." Prior to that, the Elasto Painters relied on a buzzer-beating three-pointer by Jeff Chan to turn back beat Air21, 89-86, last October 13. And that only means more trouble for the Bolts. After opening the All-Filipino meet with a 73-72 stunner of Barangay Ginebra, things have gone uphill for the rookie franchise, which proceeded to drop three straight games, including a heart-breaking 74-68 defeat to Barako Bull. The turn of events saw the Bolts plunging to the bottom of the standings, along with Derby Ace and the Energy Boosters. Still, coach Ryan Gregorio isn’t losing hope. “Our goal is to get better every game," he said. “While it is disappointing that we dropped our last three games, it does not discourage us and we will continue to find ways to win." “Rain or Shine is another challenge. They have matured into a solid team and they obviously have the roster to figure prominently." Ginebra is also looking to notch its first back-to-back victories at the Llamados’ expense. Just the other night, the Kings rallied from a 12-point deficit against Barako Bull behind a 20-6 run bridging the second and third quarters, before limiting the Energy Boosters to 11 fourth-quarter points in a 93-74 triumph. Ginebra will be seeing action for the second time in three days, and will again likely miss the services of big men Erik Menk and Yancy De Ocampo due to injuries. The Llamados finally barged into the win column by downing the Bolts last Wednesday, 75-71. – JVP, GMANews.TV