San Miguel guard Terrence Romeo. PBA IMAGES
MANILA, Philippines — Terrence Romeo hasn’t been himself since returning from a foot injury that forced him to miss three games.
Romeo had just come back last Thursday, helping San Miguel Beer sweep NorthPort in the Philippine Cup quarterfinals.
He scored 11 points in the series clincher before following it up with measly eight points in a semifinals Game 1 loss to TNT last Sunday.
But with the Beermen in danger of falling 0-2 to the Tropang Giga after being down by as many as 19 points on Wednesday, Romeo regained his shooting touch in the second half to come to the rescue.
“My game has been up and down because I’ve already dealt with a couple of injuries this conference,” Romeo said in Filipino after the 98-96 clincher. “Thank God I’m starting to get my timing back.”
“Going into this game, I just really wanted to be of big help to the team. That was my only mindset,” he added.
He did just that and then some with an electrifying display in the final frame where he fired 15 points.
Romeo, who only had two points in the first half, exploded for 24 points in the final two periods to fuel San Miguel’s comeback.
His hot shooting paved way for a dramatic finish with Marcio Lassiter’s putback at the buzzer winning it for the Beermen.
“That’s the character of the team. We never fold no matter the situation. We just stay together,” he said. “We just never gave up the whole game.”
“To tell you honestly, that was pure heart especially Terrence, he just went wild in the court. His focus was there to win the game. He made a lot of important baskets,” said his head coach Leo Austria.