The San Miguel Beermen had the champagne on ice, ready to hoist another championship trophy on a wet Wednesday evening at the Araneta Coliseum. But the TNT Tropang Giga had other plans, crashing the Beermen’s party with a gritty 86-78 victory in Game 5 of the 49th PBA Philippine Cup finals.
“They gave a lot of fight. It’s their unwillingness to give up,” said coach Chot Reyes, whose Tropang Giga notched their second win in the best-of-seven series, narrowing the Beermen’s lead to 3-2.
TNT asserted control early, riding a scorching 14-point first-quarter explosion from Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser, who finished with 18 points overall, to seize a 27-20 advantage.
Kelly Williams added six of his 14 points in the second quarter, extending TNT’s lead to a commanding 41-31 at halftime.
Calvin Oftana contributed 13 points, while Jordan Heading sealed the deal with seven of his 13 points in the crucial fourth quarter.
By denying the Beermen their chance at a 12th crown, the Tropang Giga have forced a Game 6, set for Friday at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.
For the Beermen, Jericho Cruz led the charge with 20 points. Despite the loss, San Miguel still has the opportunity to close out the series and prevent TNT from achieving a potential 49th season sweep in Game 6.
“We’re down to our final week. I said to them that we need to let this be our best week. And, today, they were not willing to give up,” Reyes reiterated, praising his team’s resilience.
Even without big man Poy Erram, the Tropang Giga’s balanced scoring attack from Ganuelas-Rosser, Williams, Oftana, Heading, RR Pogoy, and Almond Vosotros, coupled with their collective effort to contain Beermen center June Mar Fajardo in the final period, proved to be the difference-maker.
