Nick Demusis leads rally but Rain or Shine falters vs UAE to go 0-3 in Jones Cup

Nick Demusis steered Rain or Shine’s late rally however the Philippine representatives fell brief within the endgame to soak up a 73-71 loss to United Arab Emirates and stay winless within the 2023 William Jones Cup on Monday in Taiwan.

The Elasto Painters dropped to 0-3 whereas erstwhile winless UAE improved to 1-2 at their expense.

Anton Asistio unleashed three triples within the third interval as Rain or Shine went to a 53-47 lead earlier than Hamid Abdullateef Albreiki powered UAE’s 11-0 run as they took a 59-53 cushion to open the fourth.

Demusis then instigated an 8-0 rampage for the Yeng Guiao-mentored membership to regain the lead, 61-59, midway by the body. He buried one other basket that despatched them to a slim 69-68 lead however his pricey turnover led to a Albreiki three-pointer.

Demusis then sank two freebies, 71-72, earlier than he pressured a turnover from UAE. Santi Santillan, although, missed out on his layup try as Albreiki cut up his free throws to bag the victory.

The Rain or Shine ahead completed with 12 factors and three rebounds whereas import Nick Evans put up 12 markers as properly to go along with 4 boards. Asistio poured in 9 factors as Gian Mamuyac chipped in eight because the win remained elusive for the Filipinos.

Albreiki registered 22 factors whereas Qais Omar Alshabebi and Rashed Naser Alzaabi chimed in with 11 and 10 markers apiece.

Rain or Shine beforehand bowed to Chinese Taipei A and B whereas UAE had twin losses to South Korea’s Anyang KGC and USA to kick off its marketing campaign. Rain or Shine will subsequent face Qatar on Tuesday.

—Bea Micaller/JKC, GMA Integrated News