Double-double gives Painters bright start

MANILA, Philippines - Three Rain or Shine players put in a double-double job to buck the absence of Sol Mercado and overcome Scooter McFadgon’s 41-point explosion as the Elasto Painters walloped the Energy Boosters, 91-83, at the start of the Motolite PBA Fiesta Conference at the Araneta Coliseum last night.

Charles Clark, Jay-R Reyes and Gabe Norwood came through with huge numbers, steering Elasto Painters to an auspicious start in the tourney where they hope to sustain the momentum of their breakthrough performance in the recent all-Filipino tourney.

“For a first game, we played great and I think we can be better. You’ll see more of us in this tournament,” said Rain or Shine coach Caloy Garcia.

“I think the adjustment on the hand check rule will work for us. What I’m worried about is our free throw shooting. We could have been up by 20 points at halftime in this game if not for our missed free throws,” Garcia said.

The Elasto Painters took the half at 46-34 and stepped up their game towards the end of the third period to open up a 23-point spread, allowing them to cruise to the finish.

They won big despite Mercado serving a game suspension for a flagrant foul in the first game of their quarterfinals showdown against Sta. Lucia.

“Barako Bull is a good team but they’re still adjusting to a new system,” said Garcia after dealing the Energy Boosters the sorry loss in their first game under new coach Leo Isaac.

McFadgon erupted for 41 points on 14-of-30 field-goal shooting plus 11 charities but had only four rebounds.

The Elasto Painters clobbered the Energy Boosters, 62-44, in the battle off the boards with Reyes pulling down 14, Clark 13 and Norwood 11.

Brian Hamilton debuted with Purefoods with a triple-double with 22 points, 16 rebounds and 10 assists, leading the Giants to a 131-121 win over the All-Filipino champions Talk n Text Tropang Texters in the second game.

“To tell you honestly, I was not excited looking at Brian in our practices. But there are players who are game players. I’m happy with what I saw in him in this game,” said Purefoods coach Ryan Gregorio of his import.