ROGER Pogoy regained his shooting touch just in time for TNT to level the PBA Governors Cup finals against Barangay Ginebra at one-game apiece Wednesday night.
Roger Pogoy on connecting on his shots
As he previously vowed, Pogoy found his range in Game 2 to finish with 17 points including eight in the fourth period when the Tropang Giga kept at bay a rallying Ginebra side to post a 95-82 win at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The 30-year-old Cebuano guard shot 3-of-6 from beyond the arc, grabbed seven rebounds and issued three assists while alternating with Rondae Hollis-Jefferson in defending Ginebra prolific import Justin Brownlee.
“Ititira ko talaga kung ano yung ibibigay nila. Babawi talaga ako hindi lang sa points, pati sa depensa,” said Pogoy. “Buti na lang, glory to God, na-shoot yung mga tira ko.”
The former Rookie of the Year struggled in the series opener when he finished with only six points on 2-of-10 shooting, including a 1-of-5 from three-point range in a 102-90 loss.
It didn’t help any that Pogoy was given the gargantuan task of defending Brownlee.
Still, he promised to find his shots the following game in an effort to avoid going down in a 0-2 hole in the best-of-seven series.
“Mindset ko talaga is hindi ko iniisip kung ano yung laro ko nung Game 1,” Pogoy said. “Aggressive ako, nung Game 1 kasi hesitant ako, hindi ko tinitira.
“Pero ngayon kapag nakuha ko yung bola, bahala na, pukol. Tira lang ng tira.”
Somehow, the performance redeemed Pogoy from that series opener meltdown and gave him back his confidence heading into the next games of the series.
“Natabla namin. Masya kami, pero hindi pa contented,” he said. “Seven games ito, sino unang makaapat. “Basta kung ano yung mga maganda ginagawa namin patuloy lang, lalo na yung effort namin.”
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