WITH the game all but decided, Jayson Castro surprisingly still came up to the scorer’s table to check in for Jai Reyes with a little less than five minutes left.
The moment he entered the game, the Tropang TNT superstar had another injury scare as he fell on his chest after a challenge on Rain or Shine import Mo Charlo’s jumper.
But Castro brushed it off and buried a jumper in the next possession – proving he’s back in shape as the Texters dumped the Elasto Painters 114-103, in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup on Monday night.
The Gilas Pilipinas star, who returned after being sidelined for a game due to an Achilles injury, provided the spark off the bench and scattered 26 points, four assists, four boards, one steal, and one block in just 25 minutes.
“Ako nasa second unit ngayon dahil sinabi ko kay coach para balanced scoring namin, para pag wala si David (Simon) sa game, marami akong magagawa,” said Castro, who was one of six Texters in double figures.
Castro went scoreless in the first quarter, but bucked the sluggish start to catch fire in the second half.
“Nung first quarter, sobrang ‘di ko makuha yung rhythm – kita naman sa missed layups at missed jump shots, pero sabi lang ni coach na maging aggressive,” Castro said.
The 29-year-old cager admitted he still feel pain on his Achilles, but welcomed the Holy Week break before their next game on Wednesday against Ginebra.
“Medyo masakit pa, pero after this game, may break pa,” Castro said. “Kailangan ulit mag-rehab. Ready na lang sa next game ulit. Kailangan naming manalo against Ginebra.”
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