The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters are hoping third time is the charm in this PBA Season 49 Philippine Cup after dropping their last two semifinals encounters against the TNT Tropang 5G.
The Rain or Shine Elasto Painters are once again in familiar territory — and they’re embracing the underdog role with grit and youth on their side.
The No. 7 seed Elasto Painters open their best-of-seven PBA Season 49 Philippine Cup semifinal series against powerhouse TNT Tropang 5G on Wednesday, June 25.
Match starts at 5 p.m. at the SM Mall of Asia Arena, with Rain or Shine eager to finally flip the script in their third consecutive semis clash.
[RELATED STORY: Rain or Shine’s Santi Santillan looking forward to matchup with Calvin Oftana in PBA semis]
Rain or Shine has already made history by becoming the lowest seed to reach the Philippine Cup semifinals since Ginebra in 2017, doing so with back-to-back upsets of No. 2 NLEX.
Now, they look to slay another giant in TNT — the team that eliminated them in the semis of the last two conferences en route to championship runs.
[ALSO READ: Even without Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, TNT still formidable in PBA semis says ROS coach Yeng Guiao]
Led by a gutsy young core of Jhonard Clarito, Adrian Nocum, and Leonard Santillan, the Elasto Painters are riding momentum and belief.
TNT may be eyeing a historic Grand Slam after winning the Commissioner’s and Governors’ Cups, but Rain or Shine’s refusal to fold makes them a dangerous threat. They’ve come this far — and now, they’re four wins away from their first Finals appearance since 2019.
[ALSO READ: Yeng Guiao says Rain or Shine is ‘gate-crasher’ of PBA semis cast: ‘Pinabili lang ng suka’]
(With reports from Jan Ballesteros)
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[Editor's note: This article was written by a member of the One Sports Digital with the help of AI, and then checked by the staff to ensure accuracy.]