CHOT Reyes rued the way TNT played defense in a 130-117 blowout loss at the hands of Converge on Friday in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup.
Reyes pointed out the hot shooting of the FiberXers from beyond the arc where they converted 21-of-40, which obviously said a lot about how the Tropang Giga defended the perimeter at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
“We got our ass kicked,” said the champion coach. “Converge shot very well. Twenty one three pointers. You can’t win games if you allow your opponents to shoot that way.”
READ: Hot-shooting Converge fires 43 in first quarter to spark rout of TNT
Import Quincy Miller typified the FiberXers sizzling performance from beyond the arc with nine three pointers – a franchise high – while Jeron Teng was 4-of-5 from the same area. The backcourt pair of Aljun Melecio and Mike Digregorio combined for 5-of-8.
In all, Converge shot 52 percent from deep.
“Our defense really left a lot to be desired. Three-point shooting and second chance points (17-4),” said Reyes of the factors that sent the Tropang Giga tumbling to their third loss in six outings.
Reyes also mentioned another slow start by TNT which he stressed has been the perennial concern of the team this conference.
“We haven’t started a game well yet the whole six games, we haven’t started well yet. So we have to address that,” added the TNT coach.
If there’s a silver lining to the loss that saw the Tropang Giga trailed by as many as 35 (91-56), it’s the way the team execute its offense.
“Our offense wasn’t bad. We scored 117 points, we just had 10 turnovers (nine to be exact), we shot 50 percent total. (So) it’s not bad at all,” said Reyes.