THE TNT Tropang Giga kept their perfect record intact, as they blew out the reigning champions, San Miguel Beermen, 107-88, in the Philippine Cup on Friday night, October 16, 2020 at the AUF Sports Arena & Cultural Center in Pampanga.
The win gave TNT the solo lead in the standings at 3-0.
It was a game though, that saw a key player from each team get sidelined by injuries. San Miguel ace Terrence Romeo collided with TNT guard Ryan Reyes late in the first quarter and was immediately brought to the hospital because of fears that he suffered a dislocated shoulder.
TNT’s Cebuano hotshot Roger Pogoy, meanwhile, suffered a sprained ankle in the third as he landed on the foot of San Miguel guard Gelo Alolino while attempting a jumper.
Aside from the unfortunate injuries, the game was all TNT as they asserted their dominance early, leading 30-18 after the first quarter. San Miguel’s cause was certainly not helped by the fact that their top big man Moala Tautuaa already had three fouls in the first quarter alone.
TNT extended their lead to 19, 57-38, at halftime before San Miguel came alive early in the third and trimmed the deficit to just seven, 50-57, after two free-throws by Chris Ross. But JP Erram and Simon Enciso helped keep the Beermen at bay, the latter hitting three straight jumpers late in the third to give the Tropang Giga a 92-70 lead heading to the fourth.
With Tautuaa seeing limited minutes, Erram flourished and had 27 points and 15 rebounds to lead the way for TNT. Ray Parks had 22, Troy Rosario chipped in 16 while Pogoy ended up with 15.
The Beermen, which fell to 1-2, was paced by the 15 points of Alex Cabagnot. (JNP)