Rain or Shine’s grit draws praise from Yeng Guiao

Rain or Shine Elasto Painters’ Yeng Guiao during a game vs Barangay Ginebra Gin Kings in the 2026 PBA Commissioner’s Cup semifinals. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net

ANTIPOLO—Coach Yeng Guiao praised Rain or Shine’s steady resolve in taking Game 1 of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup semifinals against crowd favorite Barangay Ginebra.

The Elasto Painters overcame a double-digit deficit to come away with a 115-111 win before 10,412 fans at Ynares Center here on Wednesday despite Guiao’s belief in their underdog status in the best-of-seven affair.

“I’m really proud of the guys because what we do is show up and compete. Show up and compete,” he said during the postgame press conference.

Rain or Shine came into the semis having after showing San Miguel Beer the door in the quarterfinals, but was beaten by Ginebra handily during the eliminations.

Ginebra led by 10 in the fourth quarter, but Rain or Shine withstood some big shots from RJ Abarrientos and Justin Brownlee while getting massive contributions from import Jaylen Johnson and Jhonard Clarito, to name a few.

“To play a team like Ginebra, [with a] GOAT import, GOAT coach, half of the Gilas team, the probable Best Player of the Conference in their team,” Guiao said, referring to Brownlee, coach Tim Cone and RJ Abarrientos.

“And who are we? We just told the team to just put up a fight and see how far we can go. At least, we were able to get Game 1. We got lucky once, let’s see how many times we can get lucky. Let’s see.”

Game 2 is set Friday at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City, with Rain or Shine expecting a much harder battle in its bid to go 2-0 in the series.