By REYNALD MAGALLON
Rain or Shine faced some anxious moments late before Andrei Caracut took over to restore order and fend off a gritty Terrafirma, 94-85, in the PBA Season 49 Philippine Cup at the PhilSports Arena Wednesday, June 4.
With the Dyip threatening to pull the rug from under the playoff-bound Elasto Painters after cutting the lead down to just three, 80-83, Caracut took matters into his own hands and unloaded a 7-0 spurt to create some breathing room.
ROS, which held on to pick up its sixth win against three losses, boosted its bid to finish inside the Top 4 with two big games remaining in its elimination schedule.
The Elasto Painters are closing out the elims against San Miguel and Barangay Ginebra, making the win against Terrafirma all the more important.
Caracut had 11 points – seven of which he poured in the waning minutes by taking care of his two free throws, scoring on a layup and then drilling a huge triple that put ROS back ahead, 90-80.
Jhonard Clarito finished with 12 points while Leonard Santillan, Francis Escandor and Anton Asistio all chipped in 10 points each for ROS, which missed Felix Pangilinan-Lemetti due to a hand fracture and Beau Belga to vertigo. Meanwhile, Phoenix waxed hot from deep and torched NorthPort en route to a 118-107 victory.
