For several games, Rain or Shine looked like it belonged on the same floor with TNT. The Elastopainters were fearless, relentless, and—in many instances—on the cusp of something bigger in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup.

But Yeng Guiao’s crew, whenever the game tightened and demanded nerves, found itself always a step behind the Tropang Giga. And in a league where experience is quite a currency, they had little of that to offer, ultimately falling to the traditional powerhouse, 97-92, in Game 5 of their semifinals showdown.

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“I don’t want to make an excuse that our team is too young [but] maybe, [we ought to have] a little bit more of the mental toughness in trying to close out the games,” the champion coach told reporters on his way out of the Big Dome following a lengthy huddle with his crew. “Earlier, we had an advantage, but the turnovers destroyed our endgame.”

“Still, I’m proud of what we have accomplished,” he added.

Rain or Shine, the No. 6 seed of the midseason tournament, pushed TNT to the limit throughout their best-of-seven duel. The Elastopainters lost by only four in the series opener and then just by two before it broke through in the race. Miscues down the stretch doomed Guiao and his charges in Game 4 and then again in Game 5 for what, from a glance, looked like a repeat of their defeat in the last Governors’ Cup.

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Guiao, however, pointed out that this Final Four exit was nothing like the last time.

“The series was 4-1, but we felt that in every game we played, we had a chance,” he said. “It just went down to breaks.”

“You can see that there were improvements. Yes, we only won one game again. But [compared to the last conference, in those games] we were blown out. In this series, we really had a chance in the end game. TNT simply was a veteran when it comes to finishing.”

Guiao said he couldn’t ask anything from import Deon Thompson, who raised his game during the knockout stages, especially in the series against TNT and its do-it-all ace Rondae Hollis-Jefferson. He did, however, feel like his locals could’ve also met the moment better.

“We just have to be patient with them,” he said. “As I’ve told them, they needed to experience these kinds of games. [Whenever] they go through those times, they get to develop their toughness, they get to develop judgment and decision-making.”