Roger Pogoy was finding it hard to nail his jumpers from afar in the TNT Katropa’s match against the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters Sunday night, an unusual sight given that the rookie is marked as one of TNT’s top snipers.
The 24-year-old who hails from Minglanilla, Cebu even reached to 3-of-8 shooting from the floor in the game’s final period. He finished the match shooting 4-of-9 from the field, but his final shot came at the best time for the Katropa.
With the game tied at 101 with 51.5 seconds left to play, Jayson Castro attacked Rain or Shine’s defense, and kicked the ball out to the corner. The Elasto Painters tipped the pass, but the ball went loose.
Fortunately for the team in blue, Pogoy was able to grab the ball. The shot clock, however, was running out, leaving the neophyte with no option but to launch from distance.
Pogoy’s shot swished, luckily, and the Katropa then went ahead by a field goal, 103-101, with 26.8 ticks to go — an advantage they held on en route to a 105-102 victory.
The former Far Eastern University Tamaraw’s shot appeared to be a lucky one, but for Pogoy, it was all about taking advantage of the situation that led to his heroic deed.
“Nag-scramble lang yung depensa tapos yun nalibre ako, tinira ko, ayun na-shoot naman,” said Pogoy after their match at the Ynares Center in Antipolo, where he finished with 10 markers.
Making Pogoy’s Sunday night more memorable was that he was able to show his wares and even go toe-to-toe with two-time MVP James Yap, which he looks up to very much.
“Maganda sa feeling,” described Pogoy of playing against the sure-shot hall of famer.
“Ginagaya ko rin siya, yung one-hand [shots] niya. Idol ko [siya].”
