FILE – TNT’s Troy Rosario. PBA IMAGES
MANILA, Philippines—TNT needed an extra boost of motivation in Game 4 of the 2021 PBA Philippine Cup Finals against Magnolia and that bout of hope came in the form of the injured Troy Rosario.
That moment, however, nearly didn’t happen as the 6-foot-7 forward suffered a nasty fall in Game 3 resulting to spinal shock, a dislocated pinky, and a 70 percent loss in the sensation to his legs.
Rosario, however, managed to defy the pain and start in the crucial Game 4 which the Tropang Giga won, 106-89.
“If you asked me yesterday, I told everyone that he was very doubtful as a starter,” said TNT head coach Chot Reyes Wednesday at DHVSU Gym as his team took a 3-1 series lead. “But today the therapy worked and he started feeling better.”
Rosario finished with five points and three rebounds for the Tropang Giga.
Reyes added that Rosario is far from top condition as the pinky is still bothering him and the forward hasn’t regained the full sensation on his legs.
“The reason why we played him was really for inspirational purposes. As you can see, he couldn’t even catch the ball. But he said he wanted to try, and I thought by him being there, the message of courage was going to rub off on his teammates,” said Reyes.
“In practice, he was walking gingerly. We had a very light walkthrough and he didn’t participate in any contact stuff. So it was really a game-time decision. We said how are you feeling and he told me this morning and right before the game that he felt ready to go.”
“He still did not have a hundred percent sensation in both his legs, and you can see with the way he played today. He couldn’t catch the ball, he was really kind of tender-footed. But it was more than the skills for Troy for our team tonight.”