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It was the kind of debut Jericho Cruz was hoping to have.
In his first game for TNT, Cruz showed why the KaTropa traded for him as he gave his new team a much-needed boost offensively.
Cruz finished with a team-high 17 points that went with three rebounds, four assists and two steals in 30 minutes in a 101-75 rout of NLEX.
“I was excited and I had to control myself. I got a text from James (Yap) ‘not to be too eager and just be yourself and play, just relax and enjoy the game.’ [I did that] in the game earlier and I got good results,” he said, referring to his former teammate at Rain or Shine, James Yap.
“Also, I just wanted to repay the trust coach Nash (Racela) has in me. He told me to play point guard and I took it as a challenge. I’m just happy that we came out winning.”
Cruz’s immediate impact certainly didn’t go unnoticed.
“[He did a] major contribution. It’s no secret that, at this point, our team has no depth, and the addition of Jericho helps us in our rotation,” TNT coach Nash Racela said. “It gives us an extra guy whom we can give major minutes. And it also helped that he had a week of practice with us.”
Even Jayson Castro had high praise for the four-year veteran.
“He’s a big help for us. If you noticed earlier that even though I was on the bench, at least we had someone who can operate our offense,” said Castro, who had 10 points, four rebounds, two assists and one steal despite playing only 13 minutes.
The 27-year-old Cruz hopes to have better games ahead especially if TNT makes the playoffs.
“We’re still waiting for the outcome. But for me, I’m not gonna stop here. Keep doing my work and keep improving my conditioning so that if we get the eighth place and face San Miguel, which has twice-to-beat, I’m going to be in tip-top shape.”