TNT KaTropa staved off elimination after putting on one of its best games this season, impressively dismantling NLEX, 101-75, to stay in the hunt for a berth in the quarterfinals of the 2018 Philippine Basketball Association Philippine Cup at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City last night.
Debuting after being traded a week ago, spitfire Jericho Cruz immediately went to work for his new team, making his presence felt right away for the Tropang Texters, scoring a team-high 17 points, three rebounds and four assists, while Kelly Williams was a monster inside, tallying a double-double of 17 points and 16 rebounds to likewise impress.
The Tropang Texters ended their elimination round at 5-6, allowing them to keep their tournament life, for now.
Should the remaining results of the games left involving other teams looking to secure a spot in the quarters favor them, the Tropang Texters might still be able to make the top eight by earning a playoff for a spot and winning it.
“We knew going to this game that we needed a win to give ourselves a chance in the playoffs. We’re out if we don’t win and we were able to work hard and focus to get this win and stay alive,” said TNT coach Nash Racela. “The other things, we just have to wait now.”
As for the Road Warriors, they ended up with a 6-5 slate. They also need to wait for the results of the final games to see where they’ll land. However, they have a good shot of being one of the top eight teams having six wins.
While San Miguel, Magnolia and Alaska are already into the quarters, NLEX, Rain or Shine, Barangay Ginebra, GlobalPort, Phoenix, TNT KaTropa and Blackwater are all fighting for the last five berths with two of them eventually getting booted out, along with already ousted Meralco and Kia.
Desperately fighting for its tournament life, TNT KaTropa came out with guns ablaze.
The Tropang Texters turned in a resounding opening quarter surge to zoom to a double-digit lead at the end of one, 27-16, after a 13-4 blitz.
Apparently, they were just starting.
Carrying all the momentum and clicking on all cylinders, TNT KaTropa continued its onslaught in the second, further distancing itself against the out-of-sync Road Warriors completely.
After Troy Rosario’s jumper with over three minutes left in the second frame, the Tropang Texters saw their lead balloon to a whopping 28 points, 50-22.
By halftime, the game was broken wide open with TNT already having a gigantic 30-point cushion, 58-28.
There was no looking back from there.
A big key for TNT was that it was able to hold NLEX top gun Kiefer Ravena to just a single point in 12 minutes of play.
The Road Warriors were led by JR Quinahan’s game-high 20 points.
The Scores:
TALK N’ TEXT 101 – Cruz 17, Williams 17, Rosario 14, Pogoy 13, Castro 10, Tamsi 7, Garcia 6, Paredes 5, Semerad 3, Reyes 3, Tautuaa 2, Carey 2, Torres 2, Golla 0, Nuyles 0.
NLEX 75 – Quiñahan 20, Alas 14, Al-Hussaini 10, Mallari 5, Monfort 5, Miranda 5, Soyud 4, Tiongson 3, Ighalo 3, Fonacier 3, Taulava 2, Ravena 1, Baguio 0, Uyloan 0.
Quarterscores: 27-16, 58-28, 80-50, 101-75.