TERRAFIRMA missed the services of import Thomas De Thaey, guard Juami Tiongson, and rookie Kemark Carino in its blowout loss to TNT on Wednesday in the PBA Commissioner's Cup.
READ TNT quick to pounce on an import-less Terrafirma side
De Thaey was in uniform but didn’t play due to a Grade One strain in his groin while Tiongson and Carino weren’t even at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum due to illness.
In their absence, Terrafirma hardly stood a chance as it suffered a 133-93 loss to TNT, ending its two-game winning streak and dropping to 2-2.
TNT coach Jojo Lastimosa acknowledged that their absence definitely hurt Terrafirma.
“I have some problems with my groin,” said De Thaey, Terrafirma’s Belgian import. “It happened during the last game versus NLEX. I felt like my groin stretched a little bit. We didn’t take a risk and make it worst so that’s why they decided to let me rest today and be ready for next week’s game hopefully.”
De Thaey is averaging 19.3 points and 11.7 rebounds for Terrafirma this conference.
Tiongson is the second leading scorer for Terrafirma with an average of 20 per game, while Carino is second in the team in rebounds with 7.7 per contest.
De Thaey’s counterpart Rondae Hollis-Jefferson finished with 37 points for TNT, and was actually on pace for a 50-point night when he was rested the entire fourth quarter.
Terrafirma loss stings
“It stings because in the first half, I think we played a pretty good game,” De Thaey said. “We were playing as a team. In the second half, it was hard for me to recognize our team from the first half. It was a big contrast and obviously, it’s a big contrast and obviously, you want to be out there, help the guys, show some leadership. But it is what it is.”
De Thaey, Tiongson, and Carino have a chance to come back in Terrafirma’s game against Phoenix next Wednesday.
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