Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao during a PBA Commissioner’s Cup semifinals game against TNT Tropang Giga. –PBA IMAGES
MANILA, Philippines—Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao didn’t mince his words after the Elasto Painters dropped to a 3-1 deficit against TNT in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup semifinals on Wednesday.
Guiao’s Elasto Painters succumbed to a 93-85 loss at the hands of Tropang Giga at Araneta Coliseum and the veteran tactician pointed the officiating as the culprit.
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“The refs messed it up for us and in such a crucial game,” said Guiao.
READ: PBA: TNT edges Rain or Shine to close in on Finals berth
“I thought that if we won this, we’d change the whole momentum of the series. TNT wins it and they’re one game closer to winning the series.”
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Guiao named a few instances where the calls, or the lack thereof, played a key role in the game going against his team.
“We lost almost 10 points on those bad calls. Even if our locals shot poorly tonight, if we had gotten those calls, we would probably have the chance to win the game,” he said.
“Even they [refs] said they made some wrong calls. It is what it is. It’s hard when you’re an underdog, your opponent’s strong and you’re not getting those foul calls.”
READ: PBA: Yeng Guiao still sees positives as Rain or Shine goes down 0-2
In the closing moments of the fourth quarter, Deon Thompson was called for a foul on Kelly Williams after a fast break layup from Roger Pogoy. Williams coolly sank the freebie to put TNT up, 84-76.
Before Thompson’s foul on Williams in the 2:56 mark, Pogoy visibly bumped into Gian Mamuyac but didn’t get the whistle.
“There was a situation wherein I thought it would have changed the momentum of the game. The result could have been affected [for our benefit]. Pogoy pulled Mamy but they were the ones given three points,” said Guiao.
Guiao, though, remained optimistic on keeping the Elasto Painters afloat, saying the series isn’t over until it’s over.
“We’ll see. This isn’t done yet, there’s still Friday. We’ll watch films, do walkthroughs and see what adjustments can still be made. This isn’t over. Definitely, this isn’t over,” he said.
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Rain or Shine looks to live another day when they take on TNT for Game 5 on Friday, still at the Big Dome.
