Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
ANTIPOLO — TNT import KJ McDaniels felt Meralco played with more desire to win on Saturday night and it showed.
The KaTropa came out strong and built an early double-digit lead, but faltered in the next three quarters to squander a golden opportunity to enter the Governors’ Cup finals.
“They just gave more effort than us. We just gotta come better prepared next game, play hard and play like season on the line,” said McDaniels after the KaTropa’s 95-83 loss.
TNT took a 17-4 lead in the first six minutes of Game 4 before Meralco responded to pull ahead in the second quarter and remain in the driver’s seat the rest of the way.
“I thought defense just relaxed. They gave a lot more effort. Second half, going off their offensive rebounds. We gotta do a better job of keeping off the glass and you know, just sticking to the game plan from the first half through the second half,” McDaniels recalled. “I felt in the second half, they certainly wanted it more.”
The KaTropa tried but just couldn’t put the clamps down on Bolts import Allen Durham.
Durham powered Meralco with 36 points and 13 rebounds as the Bolts forced a winner-take-all Game 5 on Monday night.
“We gotta come out and play like our life on the line [in Game 5]. We just gotta come out there with a different mentality and fight. We gotta match their energy, match their effort,” said McDaniels, who paced TNT with 26 points and nine rebounds.