TNT is now locked at No. 4 in Group A of the PBA 50th Season Governors’ Cup after its 114-112 overtime loss to Converge last Sunday.
With their elimination round already done, the Tropang 5G now waits for the Group A games to finish to determine their opponent in the best-of-five quarterfinals.
As of this writing, Magnolia and Rain or Shine loom as their potential quarterfinal opponent since the Hotshots and the Elasto Painters are in the top two spots in Group B.
PICK YOUR POISON: NLEX, San Miguel await Ginebra in quarterfinals
Incidentally, the Hotshots and the Elasto Painters square off on Wednesday in a game where the Hotshots can clinch the No. 1 seed with a victory.
An Elasto Painters victory will place them at first with one game left in their elimination schedule against Phoenix Super LPG on Friday.
Despite finishing as the No. 4 in Group B, TNT has shown in the past that it can be a formidable opponent event as the low seed team.
Most recently in the Commissioner’s Cup, the Tropang 5G were the eighth-seeded team in the quarterfinals, but were able to knock out top-ranked NLEX despite a twice-to-win disadvantage.
TNT eventually reached the finals and lost to Barangay Ginebra in a series that went to a Game 7.
TNT also has a history of eliminating its potential quarterfinal opponents in the playoffs.
In the 50th Season Philippine Cup, the Tropang 5G ousted Magnolia in the quarterfinals where the Hotshots had a twice-to-beat advantage. They didn’t give the Hotshots a chance, winning the first game, 118-109.
TNT battled Rain or Shine in the semifinals in all the three conferences of the 49th Season (2024-25 season), with the Tropang 5G winning all three.
The last time Magnolia and Rain or Shine beat TNT in the playoffs was during the 2023-24 Season (48th Season). The Hotshots beat the Tropang Giga in the quarterfinals where they had a twice-to-beat, while the Elasto Painters also won in a best-of-three quarterfinals in a series that went the distance.
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