TNT Katropa’s Jayson Castro, the second-ranked player in the Most Valuable Conference race this season, did little on offense Tuesday evening. Fortunately for the Katropa, it hardly mattered as TNT blasted the Meralco Bolts, 113-95, to open the best-of-five PBA Governors’ Cup semifinals at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Hounded by Meralco’s leech-like defense in the first half, Castro finished with only 14 points, a far cry from last Saturday’s 42-point explosion against the Phoenix Fuel Masters in the quarterfinals.
At the end of the first half, Castro tallied just five points on an atrocious 1-of-11 shooting from the field. Off the break, he instead focused on being a distributor rather than a scorer and it paid dividends as TNT went full throttle, turning the once close game into a blowout.
Sacrificing his offense is hardly an issue as long as the team wins according to the 30 year old floor general.
“Mga shots namin nung first half di namain makuha. At the same time ako fino-force ko mga shots ko.
“Sinabi lang ni coach na we need to move the ball and find the open man,” said Castro, who also had four rebounds, nine assists, and three steals.
The Pampangueño praised the game plan of the Meralco Bolts as they continuously hounded Castro in the 48-minute affair.
“Maganda game plan nila sa akin,” he shared. “Na-realize ko nung second half na kailangan ko mag-adjust kasi naka-focus defense sa akin.”
“Kailangan ko i-involve mga teammates ko.”
Despite the low output, TNT head coach Jong Uichico lauded Castro’s all-around effort and the sacrifice he made during the game.
“Coming into this game, hindi naman namin alam kung ano yung gagawin ni coach Norman against Jayson. So siyempre nakikiramdam rin si Jasyon, babasahin niya yung laro,” TNT’s mentor said.
“Once he was able to read that, the game will come.”
For Uichico, Castro’s development as a floor general is vital for the team’s goal of returning to the Finals, a situation they have not been in since the 2015 Commissioner’s Cup.
“It’s hard to have a winning team if you don’t have a good point guard and we have a good one.
“He was known as a scoring point guard before, but he’s developed his game into both facets of the game where he can score and, at the same time, get his teammates involved, so it’s really important to the team,” Uichico remarked about his floor general.
