MANILA - (UPDATED) James Yap one-upped Paul Lee in the clutch, leading the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters to a thrilling 75-74 triumph over the Magnolia Hotshots in the 2019 PBA Philippine Cup on Wednesday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

Yap scored the game-tying bucket with 3.2 seconds left, and was also fouled on the shot by Magnolia's Rome dela Rosa. He coolly made the bonus free throw to give the Elasto Painters the lead.

James Yap with the game-winner. pic.twitter.com/JI6bmgdVMh

— Camille B. Naredo (@camillenaredo) February 13, 2019

"The story of the game is simple. It's James Yap," said ROS coach Caloy Garcia after the game. "Two big shots at the end. He just followed what we drew up, he trusted and he made the big shots."

It was Rain or Shine's fifth win in a row, giving them a 7-1 win-loss record and assuring them of a spot in the quarterfinals.

Magnolia, the champions of the 2018 PBA Governors' Cup, remain winless in 3 games.

It was a duel between Yap and Paul Lee in the end game, with Lee having drained a difficult shot of his own with 5.6 seconds to go for a 74-72 Magnolia lead.

Whatta move by Paul Lee.

Official time left is 6.1 seconds. pic.twitter.com/ejP6OgVvQf

— Camille B. Naredo (@camillenaredo) February 13, 2019

Yap stole his thunder just one possession later, as he faked dela Rosa and Rafi Reavis, before rising for his patented one-hander that found the bottom of the net. Garcia said they had drawn the play for Yap, and commended his team for following what they had planned.

"Sabi ko nga, it's just them making the shots. So, if he misses it, it's gonna be my fault. The nice thing is he made it so masaya kami ngayon," he added.

Yap finished with a team-high 18 points -- 11 of which came in the fourth quarter -- while going 6-of-13 from the field against his former team. Maverick Ahanmisi added 13 points and 7 rebounds, while Norbert Torres had 11 markers. Raymond Almazan grabbed 14 rebounds.

Rain or Shine led by as much as 14 points in the second frame, as the Hotshots got off to another flat start. But they worked their way back behind veteran guard Mark Barroca, whose three-point bombs allowed Magnolia to cut into the deficit.

• READ: Banchero dazzles with career-high 16 assists

Barroca's third triple of the game trimmed Rain or Shine's advantage to just one point, 64-63, with 4:42 left, before Rodney Brondial gave the Hotshots the lead with a triple of his own, 66-64. An Ian Sangalang basket off a pick-and-roll with Lee made it 68-64 -- Magnolia's biggest lead of the contest.

The E-Painters, however, were far from frazzled. A triple by Norbert Torres made it a one-point game, 68-67. Lee's transition bucket off a Kris Rosales turnover made it 70-67, but Yap coolly drilled a triple off a timeout to tie the game with 1:13 left.

Magnolia appeared to get a break in the final minute when Beau Belga committed a bad pass that led to a fastbreak lay-up for dela Rosa, 72-70. Belga was quick to make up for his miscue, however: the burly big man spun to the lane for a lay-up that tied the count, although he missed the bonus free throw off a foul from Brondial.

That set up the cardiac finish that saw Lee and Yap exchange big shots, with the former two-time PBA MVP nailing the game-winner.

"Now, ang target namin is really to try to make it to the Top 2 para at least medyo malaki ang advantage namin going to the next round," Garcia said of hi steam. "They basically played well today, (but) I think we could have done better."

Barroca finished with 16 points, while Sangalang had 16 points and 18 rebounds. Robbie Herndon also had a double-double (11 points, 11 boards), while Lee finished with 10 points.

Magnolia's offense once again sputtered, as they shot just 27.8% from the field, and 13-of-25 from the free throw line. Rain or Shine wasn't much better, going 34.7% from the field and 14-of-21 at the charity stripe.

The Scores

Rain or Shine 75 - Yap 18, Ahanmisi 13, Torres 11, Rosales 7, Norwood 6, Almazan 5, Belga 4, Nambatac 3, Ponferada 3, Mocon 3, Onwubere 2, Daquioag 0.

Magnolia 74 - Sangalang 16, Barroca 16, Herndon 11, Lee 10, Reavis 9, Brondial 7, Dela Rosa 2, Jalalon 2, Pascual 1, Melton 0.

Quarters: 24-14, 40-33, 55-49, 75-74.