After falling to the Meralco Bolts in their last time out, the TNT Katropa vented its frustration on the Phoenix Fuel Masters, taking a dominant 117-98 win, Friday evening at the SMART Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.
Five Katropas figured in double-figures led by 18 points each from Kelly Williams and Jayson Castro. Troy Rosario added 17 markers and nine rebounds in the convincing TNT win.
“Of course masaya kasi we were able to get this win,” shared TNT head coach Nash Racela after the game. “But that’s not the only objective, to win this ballgame. We continue to build as a team [since] marami kaming gustong baguhin dito sa TNT.”
From the tip-off, TNT raced to an early first quarter push, which propelled them to a 15-point lead at the end of the first half. Kelly Williams scored 16 of his game-high 18 points in the opening half alone, wherein his team built a 14-2 spurt to distance themselves comfortably at intermission.
Despite Phoenix having their best offensive quarter during the third, TNT was still able dictate the pace behind the troika of Jayson Castro, Troy Rosario and Moala Tautuaa. On the flip side, Phoenix struggled mightily on their side of the court, haplessly watching the beatdown ensue.
Things went from bad to worse for Phoenix as the already-decided match yielded an increase in distance between the two teams. Tautuaa made two free throws at the 6:30 mark of the final frame that established the game’s largest lead at 105-77.
“We start with our attitude. It’s a process, it takes time to change the team but we see changes so we’ll be patient,” Racela furthered. “We try to remind them kahit nung last seven minutes (blowout) that we are looking for consistencies. Kahit up 25, laruin natin ng tama.”
The more aggressive KaTropa squad went to the line for a 34-for-42 clip, a clear disparity against Phoenix’s 19-of-26. TNT also won majority of the game’s statline with more rebounds (51-35_ and more assists (24-13) while committing less turnovers (24-29).
Phoenix are now on a forgettable two-game losing streak after dropping their prior outing to a season-high 44-point drubbing against the Star Hotshots last week.
Mark Borboran and Matthew Wright led the Fuel Masters in scoring with 18 and 17 points respectively.
TNT KaTropa (3-2) will next face the Alaska Aces (2-2) next Friday at the Big Dome, while the Phoenix Petroleum (2-3) tries to stop their massive slump against the Meralco Bolts (2-2) on Dec. 21 at the FilOil Arena.
The Scores:
TNT (117) – Williams 18, Castro 18, Rosario 17, Rosales 14, Tautuaa 11, Carey 8, Pogoy 7, reyes 7, De Ocampo 5, Rosser 5, Tamsi 5, Golla 2, Sumalinog 0.
Phoenix (98) – Borboran 18, Wright 17, Baguio 15, Intal 11, Alolino 10, Caperal 9, Enciso 6, Miranda 4, Wilson J. 3, Wilson W. 3, Hayes 2, Javillonar 0, Lanete 0, Torres 0.
Quarterscores: 28-22, 60-45, 90-69, 117-98.
