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Friday, March 29, 2024

Tropang Texters battle SMB

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THREE in a row.

That’s what streaking TNT KaTropa will be aiming at when it goes for a commanding 3-1 lead over skidding San Miguel Beer in their best-of-seven semifinals series in the 2017 Philippine Basketball Association Philippines Cup playoffs.

Still hot after taking a 2-1 series lead with impressive victories in the last two games, the Tropang Texters look to ride all their momentum to go for another one over the Beermen, who are in a must win situation, in Game 4 scheduled at 7 p.m. tonight at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City in a Valentine’s Day presentation.

Despite the lead and the golden opportunity at hand, TNT coach Nash Racela doesn’t want to completely be satisfied with what his team has accomplished up to this point.

He is well aware of San Miguel’s ability to turn on the switch when it matters.

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“Coach Leo (Austria) and San Miguel are veterans. They’ve gone through so many wars. So we expect them to fight their way back We have to be ready for that,” said Racela.

TNT KaTropa forward Troy Rosario (left) gets a shot off against San Miguel Beer defender Arwind Santos (29) during their encounter won by TNT.  The two teams go at it again today at the Mall of Asia Arena.

He then credited his team’s chemistry and collective effort and mentioned that those will be the keys once again in Game 4.

“It’s still a collective effort for us. We have to rely on all our players and everyone’s contribution to continue our push against San Miguel.”

The two teams traded blows in Game 3 last Sunday night but TNT KaTropa, just like in Game 2, came out on top to take a vital 98-92 victory and take the series lead with it.

Veteran star Ranidel De Ocampo and rookie Roger Pogoy worked together to spearhead the Tropang Texters to having the edge in the series.

De Ocampo scored 24 points in Game 3 while Pogoy wasn’t far behind with 22.

More importantly for TNT, it was able to limit three-time reigning Most Valuable Player June Mar Fajardo to only 16 points as he dealt with foul trouble for most part in the second half.

For the first time this season, the aura of invincibility may have abandoned the defending champion at this point.

After racking up 11 straight wins and seemingly looking unbeatable, the Beermen lost their groove at a wrong time in the middle of a grueling semifinal duel.

San Miguel was unable to counter the Tropang Texters’ aggressive play in Games 2 and 3, resulting to losses and a 1-2 deficit that it is staring at now.

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