LUCENA CITY -- Rain or Shine waited for five  games  before finally seeing light in the PBA Governors’ Cup.

But when  they finally did, the E-Painters did it with a bang.

Rain or Shine shocked defending  champion Barangay Ginebra, 104-97, to  finally barge into the win  column  before a big crowd at  the  Quezon  Convention Center here Saturday.    

Terrence Watson  had  a  lot to do  with the E-Painters’ first win of  the  season-ending tournament.

Watson, the 31-year-old American who came in as a replacement  for J’Nathan Bullock in the E-Painters’ third game, finished with game-highs of 29 points,18 rebounds and  six blocks in 40 minutes of action.

The 6-5 guard  out of  Detroit, Michigan  struck hardest during the  E-Painters’ strongest showing  that also saw them take as much as 19-point lead.

Watson’s counterpart, Justin Brownlee, did  not  play that bad, either.

Brownlee   even  flirted with a triple double of 23 points, 16 rebounds and nine assists.

But the game  clearly belonged to Rain or Shine, which shot better from  the  floor  with 43-of-83  (51 percent)  against 39-of-93 (4 percent) of Ginebra.

Jewel Ponferada  also produced a  big game  with  18 points, five rebounds and two assists for the E-Painters.

Actually, Rain or Shine led 97-82, when Brownlee and LA Tenorio triggered  a 15-4 run that made it  97-101.

But a dagger three by Gabe Norwood  with  still   2:23 left   put a half to  the Gin Kings’  comeback, 104-97.

Meanwhile, PBA action returns at the  Araneta Coliseum  with  two more important games.

Worth watching is the 4:30 p.m. curtainraiser between struggling teams NLEX and Meralco, who both badly need a win  to save their season.

At 4-4, the Road Warriors have lost  two  straight  games and need  to get back into  the winning track fast to  keep their hopes for a quarterfinals seat.

“We’ve  given up on a top four finish. We’ve been struggling just like Meralco and our goal now is to  arrest the skid,” said NLEX coach Yeng Guiao.

Guiao  said the  Road Warriors need to play good defense even against a struggling team like the Bolts.

“Meralco is as dangerous as ever. They  can  put together a good  game  anytime,” explained  Guiao.

Magnolia, 6-1,  and Alaska Milk, 5-1,  dispute  top spot  in  the  second  game at 6:45 p.m.

The scores:

Rain or Shine  (104)  -- Watson 29, Ponferada 18, Ahanmisi 12, Norwood 11, Belga 8, Daquioag 7, Tiu 6, Yap 6, Washington 4, Borboran 3, Onwubere 0.

Ginebra  (97) --  Brownlee 23, Tenorio 15, Mariano 14, Ferrer 13, Thompson 10, Aguilar 7, Caperal 6, Chan 5, Dela Cruz 2, Caguioa 2.

Quarterscores:  28-28, 51-44, 87-73, 104-97