MANILA, Philippines – Paul Lee shone brightest in crunch time as the Star Hotshots proved to be the more composed team down the stretch, downing Rain or Shine, 99-91, to rack up their third straight win in the 2016-17 PBA Philippine Cup on Sunday at the Araneta Coliseum.

In an emotional encounter that saw Lee face off against his former team for the first time, the "Angas ng Tondo" outshone James Yap, who was also playing against the franchise that he played for 12 seasons for the very first time in his career.

Lee scored seven of his 14 points in the fourth quarter, including a booming three-pointer with two minutes left, while also tallying three rebounds and four assists – the last of which was to an open Aldrech Ramos for the dagger triple with 1:23 left to play.

The Hotshots finished the game on a 15-3 run, anchored on three-pointers by Lee and Ramos, to improve to 3-2 in the conference and hand the Elasto Painters their second loss against three wins as well. The two teams are now tied for third place along with Blackwater and TNT KaTropa.

"It's all credit to the players," said Star Coach Chito Victolero. "They gave their best effort, and they committed to our defense. Aldrech Ramos was off in the first three quarters, but he delivered in the fourth, along with Paul and (Marc) Pingris also."

"Third straight win, of course, we build our momentum and it's good for us," he added.

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In a nip-and-tuck game that featured 11 deadlocks and 13 lead changes, it appeared as though the Elasto Painters would come away with the victory after racing to an 88-84 advantage with less than five minutes left, thanks to back-to-back slam dunks from Raymond Almazan.

The Hotshots had trouble stopping Rain or Shine's dribble penetration, and were also getting clobbered on the offensive glass, as it was Yap's rebound that led to Almazan's second throwdown.

Lee took over from that point, however. After two free throws by Allein Maliksi, Lee scored a lay-up in transition to tie the ball game with 3:27 left. The rookie Jio Jalalon then gave Star the lead for good when he beat the shot-clock buzzer with a floater, and Lee, after missing his first three attempts from beyond the arc, knocked down a huge three-pointer that put the Hotshots on top, 93-88, with 1:53 left to play.

"Tiwala lang sa sistema ni coach," said Lee after the game. "And 'yung trust ko sa teammates ko, andoon talaga since Day 1."

Lee showed that trust when he passed off to Ramos for a three-pointer with 1:23 left. Jay Washington answered back with a triple of his own, but it would be Rain or Shine's last hurrah as Ramos canned yet another triple with 35 seconds to go to put the Elasto Painters away for good.

Ramos had 12 points on 4-of-4 shooting from beyond the arc, while PJ Simon had 16 points and was given the defensive assignment on Yap. Jalalon had 14 points, five rebounds, and six assists in the contest, while Pingris finished with 11 points, eight boards, and one resounding block of Almazan at the 1:38 mark of the fourth quarter.

"Pinipilit ko silang huwag maging emotional," said Victolero of his team. "Of course, it's Star vs. James and Paul vs. Rain or Shine, so hindi mawawala talaga. Ang sabi ko lang sa kanila is 'stay composed.'"

"We were aggressive, but I think we were more composed in the last five minutes," he added.

In contrast to Star, Rain or Shine fell apart down the stretch, with Beau Belga fouling out with 1:38 to go and Gabe Norwood firing a bad pass with less than a minute left that slipped through Maverick Ahanmisi's fingers.

Almazan finished with 19 points and 13 boards for Rain or Shine, while Mike Tolomia had 11 points, four rebounds, and four assists and was at his best in the third quarter. Washington added 14 points and six rebounds.

It was a tight ball game right from the very beginning, with Jalalon's baseline jumper tying the contest at 23 at the end of a back-and-forth opening frame. Star scored 10 unanswered points bridging the first and second quarters to take a 31-23 lead, but the Elasto Painters came right back, thanks to Almazan. The big man scored all of Rain or Shine's points in a 9-2 exchange that turned an eight-point deficit into a one-possession game, 32-34.

When Almazan was subbed out with four minutes left, Jericho Cruz took up the cudgels, denying Lee's lay-up then crossing over the former Rain or Shine superstar in transition for an and-1 lay-up that tied the game at 37 with 2:49 left.

Jalalon and Lee conspired to put the Hotshots back on top, 42-39, but Yap battled inside the paint for an offensive rebound and a put-back that made it a one-point game, 42-41, in favor of Star at the break.

The Elasto Painters pulled away by as much as 10 points in the third period, 65-55, thanks in part to Tolomia who broke down the Star defense to get to the rim for lay-ups. However, the Hotshots clawed their way back to Jalalon, who anchored their offense in the final four minutes of the third period. The rookie from Arellano University assisted on a lay-up by Ian Sangalang and a triple from Allein Maliksi that allowed Star to tie the game at 70.

Washington's triple with less than a minute left in the third made it 75-72 for Star, but Pingris responded with a lay-up that made it a one-point game heading into the fourth period.

The Hotshots wound up outscoring the Elasto Painters, 25-16, in the pivotal fourth quarter to come out on top.

The scores:

STAR 99 - Simon 16, Jalalon 14, Lee 14, Ramos 12, Maliksi 11, Pingris 11, Melton 6, Sangalang 6, Dela Rosa 5, Barroca 4, Reavis 0.

RAIN OR SHINE 91 - Almazan 19, Washington 14, Tolomia 11, Norwood 10, Yap 9, Ponferada 8, Ahanmisi 7, Belga 6, Cruz 5, Chan 2.

Quarters: 23-23, 42-41, 74-75, 99-91

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