THE extra work paid off as Chris McCullough conspired with Calvin Oftana to spark TNT’s 101-94 win over Barangay Ginebra that tied the PBA 50th Season Commissioner’s Cup Finals at one game apiece.
Arriving at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum six hours before 7:30 p.m. tipoff to get some shots up, the Tropang 5G import heated up early with eight of his 19 points in the first quarter that ended with his team building a 15-point lead.
READ: C-Mac gets reps early in the Big Dome as he eyes better Game 2
“That's just being a professional. I'm not really shooting well from the three, so I came early to shoot more,” McCullough said about his early arrival.
“Today I didn't shoot well again, so I'll be here early again. It's just being a professional, that's all it is. Y'all gonna see me again,” he added after making just eight of his 21 shots – and missing all his six three-point attempts.
Oftana likewise fired eight points in the opening frame, but shot better than McCullough, making 11 of his 18 shots and five triples for 31 markers.
“We were very aggressive from the start. Our guys hit big shots and that's it, we just have to stay aggressive,” McCullough said.
the Tropang 5G led by as many as 22 points – a lead big enough to weather a Ginebra rally that cut the deficit to just four points late in the game, before TNT held on.
“It's basketball: teams are going to make a run,” McCullough said. “It's going to happen, it is what it is. It's inevitable, it's going to happen. But we got the win, I'm happy we got the win. Our guys hit big shots, we finished it out.”
READ: Hot-starting TNT holds off Ginebra to even finals series
And McCullough, who completed a double-double with 16 rebounds, tries to keep controlling the boards to have the same result in Game Three on Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena.
“Just the same thing, rebound, rebound a little more. Play collective team defense and hit our shots, be aggressive,” the returning import said.
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