CAMERON Oliver and Mikey Williams took over in the second half as TNT defeated Blackwater, 108-98, on Saturday in the 2022-23 PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Philsports Arena.
TNT vs Blackwater recap
Oliver had 36 points and 10 rebounds, and Williams finished with 28 points as TNT regained its winning ways by recording its third win in five outings.
Blackwater dropped to 3-4.
Oliver and Williams combined for 33 of TNT’s 55 points in the second half to bounce back from its loss to NLEX in its previous match.
TNT took the lead for good with a 15-1 run for a 76-65 lead to come back after trailing by as many as nine early in the match.
The Tropang GIGA were able to pull away after leading by just two at the half.
“As poorly as we shot against NLEX, our problem really was our defense. Like today, if we kept NLEX to 98 points, we would have a chance to win our last game. We really intentionally put a lot on emphasis and focus on defense,” said TNT coach Chot Reyes.
Calvin Oftana and Roger Pogoy had 11 points apiece for TNT, which played for the first time against Blackwater since giving up Troy Rosario to the Bossing in an offseason trade.
Rosario, however, was in street clothes and didn’t play for the Bossing.
Cameron Krutwig had 25 points and 12 rebounds but in a losing effort as the Bossing have yet to put together a winning streak this conference.
Blackwater had a promising start as it led, 25-16, but lost the lead in that third quarter that also saw Oliver putting together a couple of dunks.
Playing against his former team, Gab Banal had 12 points and seven rebounds for the Bossing.
The scores:
TNT 108 – Oliver 38, M. Williams 28, Oftana 11, Pogoy 11, K. Williams 7, Castro 6, Tungcab 5, Erram 2, Montalbo 0, Ganuelas-Rosser 0.
Blackwater 98 – Krutwig 25, Amer 16, Suerte 15, Ular 13, Banal 12, McCarthy 11, Jackson 4, Taha 2, Melton 0, Ebona 0, Sena 0, Go 0, Ayonayon 0, Publico 0.
Quarters: 24-27; 53-51; 83-72; 108-98.