PBA Finals: McCullough says epic Game 6 duel vs Brownlee was inevitable

TNT Tropang 5G import Chris McCullough vs Barangay Ginebra Gin Kings’ Justin Brownlee during Game 6 of the 2026 PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals. –PBA IMAGES

MANILA, Philippines—Game 6 of PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals on Sunday turned into a heavyweight showdown between Justin Brownlee and Chris McCullough.

The two imports traded blows all night, but in the end, it was McCullough and Tropang 5G who emerged with a 98-80 win over Brownlee and Ginebra that tied the best-of-seven series at 3-3.

When coaches Tim Cone and Chot Reyes were asked if they had ever seen a duel quite like it, both were left speechless.

“Nope. That was the first time,” said Cone.

“Never. ever,” echoed Reyes.

TNT Tropang 5G’s Chris McCullough during Game 6 of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals vs Barangay Ginebra Gin Kings. –PBA IMAGES

If you ask McCullough, though, the epic shootout between the two imports was something that was bound to happen.

“I called it out before this series started. This’ll be one of the greatest PBA matchups that they’ll ever see,” he told the Inquirer. “I guess we put on a show for everybody but there’s one more thing to do.”

“I knew it was going to happen. The story’s still being told. We got one more thing to do which is to get Game 7. [The] job’s still not finished but hopefully we get it done.”

McCullough powered TNT with a monster double-double of 53 points–including a key four-pointer down the stretch–along with 22 rebounds.

Brownlee, on the other end, had his own explosion of 52 points, five rebounds and three assists. The Ginebra import’s scoring burst came after he tallied a career-high 54 in Game 5 just 48 hours ago.

Both imports go at it again for one last time on Wednesday in a winner-takes-all Game 7 at Mall of Asia Arena.