The TNT Tropang 5G avoided the scythe of elimination after a stellar performance against the San Miguel Beermen in Game 5 of the PBA Philippine Cup Finals.
Wounded and all, TNT showed it has a lot of fight left in it.
Tropang 5G dug deep and came through with an 86-78 victory over San Miguel in Game 5 of the PBA Season 49 Philippine Cup Finals Wednesday, July 23.
Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser stepped up to lead his squad's defiance, churning out 18 points, five rebounds, three steals and five blocks.
Kelly Williams backstopped Ganuelas-Rosser with 14 points, seven rebounds and two assists, while Calvin Oftana had 13 points, seven rebounds, five assists, a steal and two blocks.
Jordan Heading added 13 points, six rebounds, five assists and a steal.
“We just want to leave it out there. We’re down to the last week, the last couple of games. He (Chot Reyes) just asked for 48 hard minutes of all heart, and that’s what we did tonight,” said Ganuelas-Rosser.
TNT vet Kelly Williams (right) tries to stop San Miguel behemoth June Mar Fajardo in Game 5 of the PBA Finals. | Photo (c) RM Chua/One Sports
The Tropang 5G did give it their all, racing off to a scintillating start before weathering a late Beermen storm to dodge elimination.
A 13-0 surge to start the fourth period allowed TNT to enjoy a comfortable 72-55 cushion.
But the Beermen refused to fold, trimming the deficit to eight, 76-84, on Jericho Cruz’s three-pointer with only 1:24 to go.
But unlike in Game 4 where Cruz emerged a hero in the fourth quarter, he could not do anything after that booming triple.
The Tropang 5G thus narrowed the gap in the race-to-four series to 3-2.
Cruz led the way anew for SMB with his 20 points while Marcio Lassiter had his best game yet in the series with his 15 points on three treys — efforts that went down the drain.
June Mar Fajardo logged 13 points and the same number of rebounds.
TNT vs San Miguel scores:
TNT 86 – Ganuelas-Rosser 18, Williams 14, Oftana 13, Heading 13, Pogoy 11, Vosotros 11, Aurin 4, Khobuntin 2, Heruela 0.
SAN MIGUEL 78 – Cruz 20, Lassiter 15, Fajardo 13, Tautuaa 9, Trollano 8, Ross 6, Perez 5, Rosales 2, Brondial 0, Teng 0, Tiongson 0.
Quarterscores: 27-20, 41-31, 59-53, 86-78.