Painters storm back to rip Japan U22 squad in Jones Cup

TAIPEI – Rain or Shine battled back from 21-point deficit with a blazing second half show to rout the Japan U22 national team, 116-91, in the 2023 William Jones Cup at the Taipei Heping Gymnasium on Saturday.

The Elasto Painters had to endure a slow start that saw them trail 42-21 in the opening period before finally getting things going with a blistering 25-2 run bridging the third and final frames.

At the forefront of the huge second half onslaught was Santi Santillan, who finished with 20 points on a perfect 8-of-8 shooting from the field.

Plenty of players also stepped up for Rain or Shine which breached the century mark for the first time in the competition.

Ange Kouame and Gian Mamuyac led six other players in double-figures with 18 apiece while Nick Evans also had 17 points.

Andrei Caracut orchestrated the attack with 12 points and nine assists while Anton Asistio added 11.

Rain or Shine also clamped down on the defensive end as fter allowing Anthony Sukegawa to score 17 points in the first half, was only limited to just five the rest of the way.

Hiyuu Ozawa also added 19 points for Japan.Rain or Shine tries to close out the tournament with a win against UC Irvine on Sunday, August 20.