Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Tiebreaker Times

Basketball

Jayson Castro downplays Hodge hit, remains wary of Meralco


Jayson Castro allayed fears of a serious injury after getting shaken up late in TNT’s 2019 PBA Governors’ Cup semifinal opener versus sister team Meralco, Sunday evening. 

The 33-year-old inadvertently sustained a hit to the shoulder from Bolts bruiser Cliff Hodge at the 5:09-mark of the final frame while he tried to score off a lay-up. It took some time for Castro to get back on his feet.

Castro still managed to split his free throws afterward, and remained on the court until subbed out with only 1:03 remaining, with the game already decided.

“Yun, medyo okay na. Pina-stretch ko lang. Ganoon talaga,” said Castro, who flirted with a triple-double in their 103-94 victory as he finished with 17 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists.

Aside from the near-triple-double outing, Castro also collected four steals and a block. According to the decorated floor general, the KaTropa put a premium on defense in battling the Bolts.

And that showed in the stat sheet. Prior to Sunday’s contest, Meralco was averaging 21.8 assists per game. But they only had 12 dimes in the defeat and committed 24 turnovers. The Texters then converted those errors into 25 easy points.

“Lahat kami, naka-focus sa defense. Sobrang ‘yung buong break namin, ‘yun lang pinractice namin kung pa’no sila mai-stop,” shared Castro. “Hopefully, sunud-sunod na.

“Alam namin na mag[ig]ing aggressive sila, so kailangan namin maging smart kung paano sila mai-stop.”

#ReadMore  Old rivals Olsen Racela, Johnny Abarrientos relish clash once again
Written By

Oftentimes on the sidelines. Forever a student of the game. Morayta-bred.


You May Also Like

Basketball

It may just be a simple reminder from his ‘kuya,’ but Roger Pogoy took it to heart and made sure to relay as much...

Basketball

It goes without saying that filling a gap as big as what Jayson Castro had left brings immense pressure, and Rey Nambatac himself almost...

Basketball

RJ Abarrientos is under no illusion that things would be easier for Barangay Ginebra in its upcoming rematch with TNT in the PBA Season...

Basketball

TNT head coach Chot Reyes finds himself entering the PBA Finals without one of his most trusted floor generals in Jayson Castro for the...

Basketball

Jayson Castro is about to undergo surgery as the prognosis to the injury he sustained in Game 2 of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup semifinals...

Basketball

TNT can only pray for the best after Jayson Castro went down with an apparent leg injury late in their eventual win over Rain...

Basketball

TNT rode its luck in escaping Rain or Shine, 93-91,to take a 2-0 lead in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals Friday night at the...

Basketball

The usual suspects came through when needed most as TNT survived Rain or Shine, 88-84, to take Game 1 of their PBA Season 49...

Advertisement