Nocum stars as Painters stay alive vs FiberXers

MANILA, Philippines -- Adrian Nocum erupted for 28 points off the bench to tow Rain or Shine to a winner-take-all Game 3 against Converge, 114-104, in their PBA Commissioner’s Cup quarterfinals series Friday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Manila.

Nocum went berserk in the second half, scoring 16 of his total points in the final quarter to go with four rebounds, three assists and three steals. He shot 11-of-17 from the floor.

The two teams were kept in a close game in the fourth quarter, with Rain or Shine leading by just two, 89-87, after a 3-pointer by Alec Stockton.

But a game-changing 8-0 run built on an and-one play by Anton Asistio, followed by a triple and a finish off the steal by Nocum, pushed their lead to 10, 97-87, with 7:09 left.

Three-pointers by Justine Baltazar and Stockton kept Converge afloat, but shots by Deon Thompson kept the FiberXers at bay, 102-93.

A jumper by Jordan Heading sliced the lead to seven, 95-102, but Nocum was just too hot to handle, scoring eight on his own to keep the Elasto Painters ahead by 12, 110-98.

A Stockton trey cut the lead to nine, 101-110 with two minutes to go, but a dagger triple by Jhonard Clarito shut the door completely on the comeback hopes of Converge, 113-101, with 1:37 left.

Thompson backstopped Nocum’s exemplary performance -- bouncing back from a dismal Game 1 loss where he fouled out in the third quarter -- as he finished with 28 points, 18 rebounds and seven assists to go with a block in Friday's series-extending game.

Clarito added 19 markers off the bench while Anton Asistio had 10.

Heading powered Converge with 29 points, seven rebounds and six assists. He scored 18 in the first quarter.

Stockton chipped in 20 for the FiberXers, while Cheick Diallo and Justin Arana had 17 each.

The sudden death Game 3 is set on Sunday, 5 p.m., at the Ynares Center in Antipolo.