Leading MVP candidate Jeron Teng shook off his early shooting woes and registered a rare triple-double to deliver the Flying V Thunder a 114-91 conquest of the AMA Online Education Titans and claim the top seed in the 2017 Foundation Cup, Monday evening at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.
Firing blanks at the start of the match, the 23-year-old guard focused on the other facets of his game and racked 21 points, 13 assists, and 11 rebounds to become only the fourth player to reach the elusive statline and keep the Thunder immaculate at 8-0.
“Jeron has nothing to prove when it comes to his scoring, but the good thing is he’s showing that he’s a multi-dimensional player. Parang Lonzo Ball ba?” said coach Eric Altamirano.
Teng’s performance earned him an entry into the PBA D-League’s top-flight triple-double club, alongside BDO-NU’s Ray Parks, Phoenix’s Mike Tolomia (twice), and Racal Motors’ Kent Salado.
Eric Salamat also got himself going from rainbow country, shooting 7-of-11 from threes to pace the Flying V with 33 markers and five steals.
Jerick Cañada also added 15 points, five boards, and five assists, while Gab Banal chimed in a double-double of 14 markers and 12 rebounds, as the Thunder drilled 20 treys out of 42 attempts.
Still, it was a confidence-boosting victory for Flying V in the eyes of Altamirano, as they recovered from their horrific 18-2 start.
“We’re happy na kami ang unang nakapasok sa semis. In the first half, we were a bit shaky, we were so relaxed and were complacent, but the good thing is we got our game back in the third quarter,” he said, as the Thunder unfurled 41 points in the game-tilting period.
Daniel Salonga topscored for the already eliminated AMA (1-7) with 20 points on a 5-of-16 shooting, on top of five rebounds and four assists. Mario Bonleon shot a 6-of-20 clip from the field but was still able to contribute 16 markers, four boards, and three dimes.
Andre Paras had 14 points, 10 rebounds, and four blocks in the Titans loss.
Flying V play their penultimate game of the round against the Zark’s Jawbreakers on Tuesday, July 25, at 3:00pm. AMA, on the other hand, take on the Tanduay Rhum Masters on Monday, July 24, at 5:00pm
The Scores:
Flying V (114) – Salamat 33, Teng 21, Cañada 15, Banal 14, Torres 9, Thiele 7, Dionisio 6, Tampus 4, Austria 3, Colina 2, Gamboa 0, Mendoza 0, Paredes 0, Webb 0.
AMA (91) – Salonga 20, Bonleon 16, Paras 14, Calma 13, Celso 9, Flores 7, Jordan 4, Carpio 3, Macaranas 3, Tobias 2, Alas 0, Asuncion 0.
Quarterscores: 18-27, 43-45, 84-65, 114-91.
