Jayson Castro believes that he was able to get the ball off in time, as his game-winner that towed TNT past San Miguel in Game One of the 2022 PBA Philippine Cup Finals on Sunday night sparked a debate among fans online.
“Sa akin naman, alam ko naman na natira ko siya before mag-buzzer,” he said moments after the reigning champs’ 86-84 win at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
The soft-spoken star came through in the clutch yet again when he nailed the mid-range jumper as time expired. But it went through a lengthy review by the referees, checking if he really was able to release it before the final buzzer.
It was then deemed later on that Castro did. But some netizens contested the decision, even posting screenshots of that particular play while insisting that the ball was still in the finger of the 36-year-old with no more time left.
Then again, the decorated playmaker said that he was able to beat the clock, and is leaving the endgame decision to the game officials.
“Nasa referee naman ‘yung kung anong nakita nila e,” said Castro, who finished with 15 points. “Nasa referees’ decision pa rin ‘yun.”
Still, it marked yet another clutch outing from the 36-year-old, who also saved TNT in Game Three of their semis clash against Magnolia through a desperation trey in the final seconds to eventually give them the 2-1 series lead.
“Napapasakto lang,” he said. “Tsaka ‘yung confidence ng team at ng coaches siguro. Kailangan ko lang itira kasi ‘yun nga, napunta sa’kin ‘yung bola.”
Castro’s indeed happy with the victory but was quick to point out some of the matters that need to be addressed for Game Two on Wednesday, especially after trailing by as much as 15 in the first half before rallying back.
“Sobrang sama ng first half namin kasi ang dami naming turnover … then ang dami rin maming missed free throws — ako apat ata,” he said as TNT committed 18 turnovers in the game and went just 13-of-25 from the line.
“Kailangan din namin i-fix ‘yung defense namin as a team, kasi noong first half, hindi kami nagco-communicate on defense.”
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The second game of each PBA gameday is live-streamed on SMART Sports.
