Ricardo Ratliffe played like he had never left the Star Hotshots
The Virginia-native scored 37 huge points in his comeback, including the game’s finishing touches, to help the Hotshots earn a 107-97 win over the TNT Katropa for their third straight win in the 2017 Commissioner’s Cup at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
The victory now lifts Star’s card to 7-2, tied with the Meralco Bolts for the second spot. TNT, on the other hand, lost their second game in three outings and now sport a 6-3 record.
“We love Tony [Mitchell], but kailangan namin si Ricardo,” said Star head coach Chito Victolero of his import Ratliffe, who shot a remarkable 13-of-20 from the floor and also hauled down a game-high 22 rebounds, along with three blocks, in the 39 minutes he logged in.
But just when TNT were able to climb from a 97-87 hole to close within three, 100-97, after four straight points by Donte Greene with 3:15 left in the payoff period, Paul Lee knocked down a cold-blooded trey from the right wing to widen Star’s lead to six, 103-97, with 2:55 remaining.
From there, Ratliffe made his presence felt, providing the game’s final blows by scoring two consecutive baskets from inside the paint at 1:09 and 58.6, respectively, to lift the Hotshots up by ten, 107-97, and to fend off the Katropa once and for all.
Lee backed up Ratliffe with an all-around game of 17 points on 12 shots, five rebounds, and five assists. Peter June Simon and Aldrech Ramos contributed 12 and 11 markers, respectively.
The Katropa were led by Greene with 29 points spiked by five triples along with 12 rebounds, while Kris Rosales had 15 markers and four dimes. Ryan Reyes and Ranidel De Ocampo each supplied 10 markers in the loss.
The Hotshots shot a notable 51 percent, with most of their shots coming from their 23 team assists. They also reigned supreme in the rebounding wars, 55-38. However, Star had 22 miscues, which TNT converted to 17 points.
Star will look to extend their streak to four as they face Meralco on May 24, Wednesday, 7:00 PM at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum, while TNT will try to bounce back versus Alaska on May 20, Saturday, 5:00 PM at Legazpi City, Albay.
The Scores:
Star (107) – Ratliffe 37, Lee 17, Simon 12, Ramos 11, Barroca 10, Sangalang 7, Melton 6, Reavis 5, Dela Rosa 2, Abundo 0.
TNT (97) – Greene 29, Rosales 15, Williams 11, Reyes 10, De Ocampo 10, Tautuaa 6, Garcia 6, Hernandez 5, Carey 3, Tamsi 2, Sumalinog 0.
Quarterscores: 22-35, 60-59, 87-79, 107-97.
