LEONARD SANTILLAN nailed a last-second basket to lift an importless Rain or Shine past Terrafirma, 120-118, on Thursday in the Philippine Basketball Association Governors’ Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Santillan hit the go-ahead basket with a second left on a Rey Nambatac assist, lifting the Elasto Painters to back-to-back wins for a 2-4 win-loss record.
Import Greg Smith—who debuted against Blackwater with 38 points, six rebounds and five assists last Sunday—failed to secure a clearance from the International Basketball Federation following his stint in Mexico and was barred from playing.
“Everybody just needs to make their contributions after what happened. In fact, we prepared with him around,” Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao said. “The guys were determined to win even without Greg. We really feel for the locals especially if we’re running our system.”
Import Jordan Williams, who posted 27 of his 30 points in the second half in addition to his 16 rebounds, tied the count at 118 with a lay-up with 25 seconds left.
Andrei Caracut scored a career-high 25 points on 9-of-13 shooting from the field while Santillan added 21 points.
Gabe Norwood made 18 points and Nambatac added 14 points, seven assists and five rebounds for the Elasto Painters.
The Dyip fell to a 2-4 win-loss record.
Image credits: PBA Image