A TACTICAL defensive adjustment at halftime sparked a decisive comeback from 21 points down as the TNT Tropang 5G stunned the Meralco Bolts, 100-95, in Game 1 of the PBA Philippine Cup semifinals Sunday, Jan. 4, 2026, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
TNT guns for a 2-0 lead on Wednesday, also at the Big Dome, with take-charge forward Calvin Oftana, who had nine of his game-high 28 points in the down-to-the-wire fourth quarter, saying they need to be ready for the vengeful Bolts in Game 2.
“Mahaba pa tong (This is still a long) series,” said Oftana, who went 1-of-5 from three-point range but 11-of-12 from the free-throw line.
Tropang 5G coach Chot Reyes took responsibility for the deep hole his team fell into in the second quarter, when the Bolts surged to a 52-31 lead and closed out the half at 62-46.
“That’s on me,” said Reyes. “We prepared a game plan that they picked apart.”
On his way to the interview room after the game, Reyes explained: “We told them at halftime that no matter what our defensive game plan is, in the end we have to defend one-on-one and don’t rely too much on help. We need to defend the point of attack, defend the ball better. I think that’s what we did in the second half when we hunkered down on our defense.”
TNT also unleashed Oftana along with two others on the fast-tiring Bolts. Rey Nambatac had 17 points, including 11 in the second half, and RR Pogoy scored 16, pouring in 11 in the third quarter alone. By the end of the period, the Tropang 5G erased Meralco’s 16-point advantage.
The loss was the Bolts’ sixth in a row to TNT dating back to the 2024 Commissioner’s Cup, according to the PBA’s official statistician.
The victory was a near mirror image of their Oct. 29 meeting at the Ynares Sports Center in Antipolo, where the Tropang 5G also overcame a 23-point deficit to win 100-98 in overtime.
For a fleeting moment, the Bolts came out of the TNT-generated storm and grabbed an 89-86 edge with 5:18 left. But Jordan Heading answered with a slashing drive and veteran Kelly Williams completed a three-point play to put the Tropa back on top, 91-89.
Meralco leveled the score once more but never wrested the advantage back as Oftana wrapped up his big night with four straight free throws in the closing seconds.
Ginebra also takes Game 1
In the nightcap, RJ Abarrientos led a Barangay Ginebra bench mob that outworked and outplayed San Miguel Beer as the Gin Kings drew first blood in their own best-of-seven semifinals.
Abarrientos scored a team-high 23 points, while Ralph Cu, Jayson David and Norbert Torres combined for 31 as Ginebra ended San Miguel’s 10-game roll with a 99-90.
“We’re very aware that they’re the No. 1 team in bench points and we challenged our guys to come out and play,” said Ginebra coach Tim Cone, lauding Abarrientos, Cu, David and Torres for their effort.
The Ginebra reserves outscored their San Miguel counterparts, 54-29.
“The guys did a good job keeping the energy high,” Cone said, adding that it’s not often a team can beat San Miguel even with June Mar Fajardo delivering a monster 20-20 game. / PBA.PH