FILE – TNT import Terrence Jones. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines–TNT bucked a wobbly start and weathered foul trouble to hammer out a 115-105 decision over San Miguel Beer and to regain control of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals Friday night at Smart Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.
Import Terrence Jones put together scintillating do-it-all performance, scoring 16 of his total 37 points to ignite a blistering run in the second period that helped KaTropa come back from 17 down.
“He had a Flagrant 1 early into the game, so we told him to stay focused, stay patient and not lose his head,” coach Bong Ravena recalled telling Jones.
“It was just not getting too hung up on what’s going on with the flow of the game, or whatever,” added KaTropa’s active consultant Mark Dickel.
“I thought Terrence was great, just not getting into it—with San Miguel’s antics. That gave us rhythm out there. When he has good rhythm, our other guys tend to make shots,” he said of Jones, who nearly chalked up another triple-double with 18 boards and nine assists.
“We were emotional at the start of the game. We thought we just had to stay focused. I’m also happy that the locals stepped up,” said Ravena about their 24 unanswered points in the second quarter that got them back in the thick of the contest and ahead by halftime break.
Roger Pogoy had 29 while Don Trollano tossed in a career-best 18 points, joining hands in the final frame for a shooting showcase that pretty much snuffed out the fight from the Beermen and gave the KaTropa a 2-1 lead in the race.
San Miguel turned to import Chris McCullough and June Mar Fajardo, who had his best scoring output yet this series. They both scored 27 points and plucked down 13 rebounds.
Terrence Romeo scored 13 points, again off the bench, while Von Pessumal and Arwind Santos chipped in respective twin-digit performances in the losing stand that had coach Leo Austria taking the blame.
“This was the first time this series we had a good start. But we let them play their game that’s why we kept on scrambling on defense,” rued the San Miguel coach.
“It’s my fault. I wasn’t able to use my timeouts. Sometimes I let the players play (a bit too much).”
TNT shoots for a commanding 3-1 lead and a psychological edge on Sunday again at the Big Dome.
POST-GAME INTERVIEW