Guiao finds gem in Tiongson

Rookie Caelan Tiongson is giving Rain or Shine its money’s worth.

The seventh overall pick in the recent Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Draft has been performing well for the unbeaten Elasto Painters in the season-opening Governors’ Cup.

His offensive prowess is a given but what head coach Yeng Guiao admired the most from the Filipino-American rookie is his defensive effort in containing the opposing teams’ imports.

The 32-year-old forward was particularly impressive in playing a crucial role in Rain or Shine’s comeback from 21 points down in a 124-105 crushing of NLEX last Wednesday to hike their record to 3-0 on top of Group B.

Tiongson stymied Road Warriors import Myke Henry’s offense in the last three quarters after blasting 14 points in the opening period where NLEX established its lead.

“Caelan Tiongson did an excellent job shutting him down,” Guiao said.

With Tiongson locking him down, Henry only had seven points in the second to fourth canto and shot 9-of-14 from the field.

“I think the biggest thing for us was putting a stop to their momentum playing good defense on Myke Henry,” Guiao said.

Despite his hard task of guarding and actually slowing down Henry, Tiongson still contributed offensively with 10 points.

Tiongson also displayed the same aggressiveness on the defensive end last week, giving Barangay Ginebra San Miguel’s resident reinforcement Justin Brownlee a hard time in Candon, Ilocos Sur.

Rain or Shine escaped with a 74-63 win over the Gin Kings, who saw Brownlee throw a terrible 7-of-21 field goal shooting in a quiet 18-point outing with Tiongson all over his face.

“He also did that against Justin Brownlee. He was crucial in making the stops. The points he did for us were just a bonus,” Guiao said.