Photo by Tristan Tamayo/ INQUIRER.net
Jayson Castro couldn’t help but be baffled with how the hardworking TNT squad lost its 2018 PBA Philippine Cup season opener to Rain or Shine, 82-79, on Friday given how his team won in almost all statistical departments.
“I’m also confused. We won virtually every stats, but we still lost the game,” he said after putting up near triple-double numbers of 18 points, nine rebounds and 10 assists.
The KaTropa’s efforts were evident in the game as they dominated the boards, 73-54, had more points in the paint (32 to 20) and second chance points (25 to 14). They also dished more assists (18 to 13) and blocked more shots (eight to five).
What Castro failed to mention, however, was how the Elasto Painters shot better from the field.
Rain or Shine went 29-of-79 from the field, amounting to a 36 percent clip, against to the 31-of-102 shooting for TNT, which only translated to 30 percent. Also hurting the KaTropa were their horrendous 8-of-38 shooting from beyond the arc, something that the 31-year-old guard said should be a pressing concern for the team moving forward.
“Our outside shots were bad. We need to work on those and execute our new plays,” he said.
But Castro can still draw some silver lining from those numbers as he expressed satisfaction with how TNT bounced back in the second half after a terrible showing in the first two quarters.
“We had a good second half and I hope we could sustain that. We’re aggressive on both ends and I see it more as a good news. Hopefully next game, we can have those stats and pull out the win,” he said.
TNT closes the year against Alaska on December 29, still at Cuneta Astrodome.