JAYSON Castro sank a buzzer-beating jumper to lift TNT to a pulsating 86-84 win over San Miguel on Sunday in the opener of the 2022 PBA Philippine Cup Finals at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
With 1.6 seconds to work with, Castro provided the heroics once again by hitting the game-winner as TNT completed a comeback from 15 points down before a crowd of over 8,000 fans that included NBA guard Jordan Clarkson.
[See Clarkson says he's a 'big fan' of Williams: 'Mikey's got game']
It took a while for league officials to confirm that Castro’s shot left his hands just in the nick of time for the Tropang GIGA win.
Castro finished with 15 points, none bigger than the jump shot he converted after he took two dribbles and pulled up for a quick-release jumper against the defense of Simon Enciso as the clock ran out.
Castro’s heroics preserved the efforts of RR Pogoy and Mikey Williams, who led TNT’s comeback from 45-30 down while Clarkson sat at courtside while taking a break from his training with Gilas Pilipinas.
Pogoy had 26 points including 10 in that critical third quarter, while Williams had 21 points, 15 coming in the second half, and shot 7-of-19 from the field after only hitting one of his six shots in the first half.
“San Miguel was outplaying us. This is the finals. The only way we can beat a team like that is all of them to contribute not necessarily in scoring but in other facets of the game,” said TNT coach Chot Reyes.
The win was a fitting sendoff for Reyes, who will leave for Lebanon to coach Gilas Pilipinas for the fourth window of the Fiba Basketball World Cup Asia qualifiers.
June Mar Fajardo tallied 24 points, 16 rebounds, and two blocks, while CJ Perez had 21 points for San Miguel but TNT was able to limit the other players offensively.
The Beermen looked poise to send the game into overtime when Vic Manuel completed a three-point play with 53.6 seconds left to tie the count at 84-84.
But TNT played excellent defense in San Miguel’s final possession, forcing a 24-second shotclock violation that enabled the Tropang GIGA to map out the last play of the match.
Down 53-41, TNT went on a 13-0 run to regain the lead and went on to grab a 70-64 advantage entering the fourth.
The scores:
TNT 86 – Pogoy 26, M. Williams 21, Castro 15, Erram 9, Khobuntin 8, Reyes 6, Rosario 1, Montalbo 0, K. Williams 0, Marcelo 0, Ganuelas-Rosser 0.
San Miguel 84 – Fajardo 24, Perez 21, Cruz 10, Manuel 9, Tautuaa 6, Lassiter 5, Brondial 4, Enciso 3, Ross 2.
Quarters: 16-21; 37-49; 70-64; 86-84.
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