MANILA, Philippines – On Sunday, May 19, Yeng Guiao and Jorge Gallent square off again in Game Two of the PBA Season 48 Philippine Cup quarterfinals.

In their PBA semi final matchup against top-seeded San Miguel, Rain or Shine coach Yeng Guiao played down the Elasto Painters’ chances, but Beermen chief strategist Jorge Gallent had other ideas.

It is a hard job for the rest of the field to play San Miguel, a powerhouse club that boasts of the “Death 15,” on the grander stage of the PBA playoffs.

The Beermen’s opponent in the best-of-seven semifinal series, which got underway on Friday, May 17, is aware of this.

Before the game, Yeng Guiao, the coach of the Elasto Painters, labeled his squad as the “underdogs,” preferring to take the weight off of themselves by concentrating on their work ethic and the fight they would give their opponent—the team with the most championships in the league—into account.

In their PBA semi final series, Rain or Shine’s Jhonard Clarito and Gian Mamuyac attempt, but are unable, to contain June Mar Fajardo of San Miguel in Game 1

Rain or Shine set up the penultimate round matchup with the No. 1 seed Beermen with a quarterfinal victory over TNT. “We’re playing as underdogs, we know that. As for San Miguel, your opponent is the best team in the conference. I don’t think there’s any pressure on us. We will just play as hard as we can,” Guiao remarked.

“Just fight, just see how far we can go. We have no loyalty to June Mar (Fajardo), to CJ (Perez), to Terrence (Romeo). But we will make them suffer. That’s all we can do. If we win, we win. If we lose , you have to lose with your head held high after the game,” he stated.

Rain or Shine did turn it into a struggle, with the Elasto Painters persistently attempting to reduce the gap, preventing the Beermen from taking any significant leads until Game 1. 

In reality, behind by just three points, 98-101, Rain or Shine had a chance to force OT, but Andrei Caracut fouled up a three-point shot and the Elasto Painters were unable to execute their play in the last 11 seconds.

According to San Miguel coach Jorge Gallent, Rain or Shine is a “great team” that deserves to be in the semifinals because of its excellent coaching and balance.

After the Beermen won the first game of the series, Gallent stated, “Rain or Shine deserves to be in the semifinals. They’re a great team. They’re young, they’re great. If they don’t deserve to be here, they wouldn’t be here.”

“Rain or Shine, you’re saying, is just a team here? No, it’s a good team. It’s a well-balanced team. And it’s well-coached,” said Gallent.

Gallent was not happy that the Elasto Painters even made the Beermen make 16 turnovers, which resulted in 14 points for Rain or Shine.

“We had sixteen.” That is quite a bit for a team, Gallent said.

Before attempting to build on their victory in Game Two against the Elasto Painters, who are keen to tie the series, Gallent and the other Beermen will need to keep that in mind.