Alaska deals Rain or Shine first loss in the PBA bubble

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

 

Vic “Muscle Man” Manuel showed up when the Alaska Aces needed him most to help complete their comeback against the tough Rain or Shine Elastopainters squad, 89-88.

What seemed to be a comfortable eight-point lead for the Elastopainters suddenly vanished off a clutch performance from the Muscle Man.

The star forward of the Aces scored the last six Alaska points and helped his team take back the lead, 85-80 with 1:43 left in the final quarter.

Manuel scored on a baseline jumpshot then later on converted a contested one-hander push shot against one of Rain or Shine’s best defenders, Beau Belga.

The 6-foot-4 power forward then sank the game-winning free throws to cap-off an astonishing 14-2 run to close the game and give his team their third straight win.

The Muscle Man shot 8/17 from the field, scored 18 points, and grabbed seven rebounds while also anchoring his team’s defense in the interior.

Sidney Onwubere’s monster game wasn’t enough to help the Elastopainters hold on to their eight-point lead as Manuel’s experience got the better of them.

It was a back-and-forth slugfest throughout the game and both teams exchanged scoring runs except in the last 1:40 of the game where the Elastopainters wasn’t able to stem the tide.