ANTIPOLO – Inserted as part of San Miguel’s starting unit in Game 5 of the PBA Philippine Cup finals, Rodney Brondial made the most out of the opportunity and led the Beermen to a 96-82 bounce back win over TNT, pushing the Beermen to within arms’ reach of retaining the PBA Philippine Cup championship.
The 35-year-old Brondial finished with team-highs of 17 points and 15 rebounds in Friday night’s victory that allowed the defending champions to regain the upper hand in the title series, 3-2, at the Ynares Center.
READ: Brondial double-double leads SMB to Game 5 win, 3-2 lead over TNT
What makes his performance even more impressive is that he’s yet to fully recover from the sprained ankle he suffered in Game 2 of the finals.
It played a huge role in him cramping up in the final three minutes of the match when he was substituted out for good.
By that time, San Miguel had the win already in the bag, 92-79.
“Gawa ito nung injury ko nung natapilok ko. So naka-apekto yung muscle, nag shutdown,” he explained of the cramps he suffered a few plays after hitting a corner three-pointer that gave San Miguel a 90-76 advantage.
“Hindi pa kasi 100 hundred percent yung tapilok ko. Buti nakabalik na rin ako kahit paano.”
Brondial is aware of the significance of the match as being down after Game 5 meant having to win two straight games to snare the championship.
“Mahirap kasi ma-down 3-2 sa series na ito,” he said.
“E, yung mga nakaraang games namin hindi ako gaano nakapag-contribute, siyempre may mga inaalalayan,” the big man out of Adamson added. ”So ngayon sabi ko hindi na puwede tayong pumetiks. Kailangan buhos na.”
Game 6 is scheduled on Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena, and given the opportunity, Brondial hopes to finish it off and avoid a do-or-die game against TNT.
Even with a still not fully-healed ankle.
“Sabi ko lang dun sa mga PT naming, basta nakakabit pa, nakakatakbo pa, laban lang,” said Brondial.
“Hangga’t hindi pa tapos, kunin namin. Sayang yung pambili ng kalabaw,” added the San Miguel forward, drawing laughter during the post-game presser.
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