MANILA – TNT Tropang Giga has moved on to the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals after a 97-92 victory over Rain or Shine Elasto Painters in Game 5 of the semifinals last night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson tallied a double-double of 42 points and 11 rebounds to go with three blocks and two assists as the Tropang Giga wrapped up the race-to-four series at 4-1.
Calvin Oftana posted a double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds, while Rey Nambatac contributed 12 points and eight assists for TNT, which is aiming for their second straight title after ruling the Governors’ Cup late last year.
Down by as many as 10 points in the third quarter, the Tropang Giga slowly clawed their way before they surged to an 82-77 advantage behind the efforts of Hollis-Jefferson and Nambatac.
The Painters managed to cut the deficit to two points several times but a three-pointer from Oftana and inside conversions from Hollis-Jefferson stretched the Tropang Giga’s lead to 95-86.
Rain or Shine made their last push to cut the deficit to 92-96 after a four-point shot from Adrian Nocum, but a split free throw from Hollis-Jefferson with less than 10 seconds in game sealed the win for TNT.
Oftana said that they are offering the rest of the Tropang Giga’s Commissioner’s Cup campaign to teammate Jayson Castro, who was ruled out for the rest of the season due to a knee injury in Game 2.
“Malaking bagay na wala si Kuya Jayson. Itong remaining games namin inofer namin sa kanya,” Oftana said in post-game interview.
“Big factor is Kuya Jayson sa amin pero it’s not one person who can fill up sa shoes ni Kuya Jayson, it should be us as a team,” added the former San Beda University Red Lions star.
Deon Thompson top-scored for the Painters with 34 points, while Nocum and Andrei Caracut finished with 13 and 10 points, respectively./PN
BOX SCORE:
TNT 97 – Hollis-Jefferson 42, Nambatac 12, Oftana 12, Pogoy 9, Khobuntin 9,Williams 8, Aurin 3, Erram 2, Heruela 0, Galinato 0.
RAIN OR SHINE 92 – Thompson 34, Nocum 13, Caracut 10, Tiongson 8, Santillan 7, Lemetti 6, Mamuyac 5, Norwood 5, Ildefonso 4, Clarito 0, Datu 0, Asistio 0.
Quarterscores: 28-27, 44-46, 66-67, 97-92.
