tnt averts disaster
HANDS TERRAFIRMA FIRST DEFEAT
Games today (Smart Araneta Coliseum) 3 p.m. – Meralco vs NorthPort 6:15 p.m. – Phoenix vs Ginebra
No way was TNT letting disaster strike twice in one week.
Digging deep amid a depleted lineup, the Tropang Giga grinded out a 100-97 victory over upset-hungry Terrafirma to get back on track in yesterday’s PBA Philippine Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Jayson Castro delivered a vintage performance of 23 points and rookie Henry Galinato had a breakout game of 17 markers and 11 rebounds to serve as the anchors of TNT’s quick bounceback from its 76-87 upset at the hands of surprise unbeaten leader Blackwater seven days ago.
The Tropang Giga drew level with the Dyip at 2-1 after handing the latter their first loss of the tournament.
At the same time, the three-point win maintained the Tropang Giga’s stranglehold of the Dyip, whom they have now beaten for the 17th straight game over the last seven seasons.
The last four of those were blowouts with TNT winning by an average margin of 30.25 markers. But this time around, it was a lot harder.
Coach Chot Reyes, though, pretty much anticipated this tough challenge.
“What we’re seeing in the league, not only Terrafirma but also Blackwater, Phoenix in the last conference, and NorthPort, they’ve really stacked up, made really good picks in the draft. And now they (new players) are showing up and making them a lot more competitive,” said Reyes.
Later, Robert Bolick erupted for a career-high 46 to lead NLEX (3-1) past slumping Converge (0-4), 115-93, for solo third. The scores: First Game TNT 100 – Castro 23, Khobuntin 19, Oftana 19, Galinato 17, Ganuelas-Rosser B. 11, Aurin 4, Montalbo 4, Heruela 3, Ebona 0, Varilla 0, Reyes 0, Ganuelas-Rosser M. 0, Ponferrada 0
Terrafirma 97 – Holt 24, Tiongson 21, Gomez de Liaño 18, Go 11, Alolino 9, Ramos 5, Sangalang 5, Cariño 2, Camson 2, Olivario 0, Cahilig 0, Calvo 0 Quarterscores: 23-21, 50-41, 73-69, 100-97 Second Game NLEX 115 – Bolick 46, Herndon 17, Nermal 13, Amer 10, Ular 6, Valdez 5, Nieto 4, Semerad 4, Charcos 3, Rodger 3, Fajardo 2, Marcelo 2, Miranda 0, Pascual 0
Converge 93 – Arana 20, Santos 18, Stockton 13, Winston 10, Ambohot 8, Melecio 5, Delos Santos 4, Fleming 4, Fornilos 3, Balanza 3, Nieto 3, Zaldivar 2, Caralipio 0, Maagdenderg 0 Quarterscores: 24-28, 54-52, 84-71, 115-93 NOTES: Jamie Malonzo let his game do the talking Friday or weeks after he was involved in an ugly off-court fistfight with a still unidentified and lone adversary. He busied himself with training, surrounded by encouraging teammates to pick himself up. The athletic Fil-Am hit the court and, sporting a mildly swollen eye and all, delivered a career high of 32 points to power the Scottie Thompson-less Ginebra past Rain or Shine, 113-107. “It’s definitely been tough,” Malonzo said during the post-game presscon, his voice breaking. “It’s been a lot for me. Just credit to my team, they’ve been holding me down, checking on me. Throughout that whole process, they have my back so I got to give credit to my team,” he said.
Games today (Mall of Asia Arena) 10 a.m. – UE vs NU (men) 12 noon – UP vs DLSU (men) 2 p.m. – UE vs NU (women) 4 p.m. – UP vs DLSU Santo Tomas took down Ateneo, 25-19, 25-16, 25-19, to stretch its unbeaten run and firm up hold of the top spot in the UAAP Season 86 women’s volleyball tournament yesterday at the Mall of Asia Arena. Angeline Poyos, in a toeto-toe race with UE’s Casiey Dongallo for the Rookie of the Year – and possibly the MVP plum – notched the gear higher with a career-best outing of 26 points to anchor yet another straight-sets win by the Golden Tigresses. Poyos unleashed 21 hits, three aces and two blocks as Santo Tomas needed only 89 minutes to dispatch the Blue Eagles for a 5-0 slate, its best start in the last 12 seasons.