The TNT KaTropa will miss veteran point guard Jayson Castro for three to four weeks due to a soleus muscle strain, team manager Gabby Cui confirmed to Tiebreaker Times on Saturday.
Castro got hurt after driving to the rim at the 6:18 mark of the first quarter of the Texters’ 2019 PBA Governors’ Cup meeting versus sister teams NLEX Road Warriors on Friday evening.
He did not return to the game, finishing with just two rebounds and an assist in five minutes and 42 seconds of play.
The 33-year-old then left the SMART Araneta Coliseum before the fourth quarter started to have his injury checked — an injury the team feared might have affected his Achilles heel.
For TNT, losing the 11-year league veteran’s proved costly. The KaTropa bowed to the Road Warriors, 113-126, absorbing their first loss after starting the conference with seven straight wins.
Castro’s prolonged absence means a tough challenge for TNT. Its last three games are against the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel, Magnolia Hotshots, and San Miguel Beermen.
However, his injury will not affect his duty with Gilas Pilipinas in the 30th Southeast Asian Games.
