Roger Pogoy is well aware that it all starts with the veterans if TNT wants to stay alive in the PBA Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup playoffs.
Fully embracing his role with the franchise that took him in 2016, the 33-year-old took it upon himself to encourage the Tropang 5G, particularly his fellow stars, in making sure that they won’t head into an early vacation versus NLEX.
No doubt that it worked as the locals and super import Bol Bol finally strung a good game together, ultimately dragging the twice-to-beat Road Warriors to a sudden death–and more importantly kept their title defense very much in play.
“Pinagusapan talaga namin na kung gusto namin umusad sa next level, kailangan talaga mag-step up kaming lahat,” the two-way specialist offered moments after their 96-93 escape at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
Pogoy himself poured 15 points, 12 of which he made in the third quarter, to help give them the 76-72 lead by the end, which put them ahead for good.
He shot a decent 5-of-10 from the floor and went near-perfect from the foul line with a 4-of-5 clip, and also had three rebounds, two assists, and three steals.
(C) PBA Images
But the former Gilas stalwart was happy not only with his showing in particular, but with the way the locals delivered to give Bol much-needed support.
The 7-foot-3 beanpole still led the way with 34 points and 14 rebounds, but two others finished in double figures, with Calvin Oftana firing 19 points–spiked by a quartet of triples–and Jayson Castro coming through with 14 markers.
It was a historic night for ‘The Blur’ as well, as he cracked the league’s 10,000 points club, becoming the 18th player in history to do so.
“Kinausap ko rin si Calvin na kailangan akuin namin ‘yung responsibilidad kasi kami naman ‘yung matatanda na rito sa team e,” said Pogoy, visibly proud of the balanced attack they displayed.
“Buti na lang nag-produce kami ngayon.”
But of course, none couldn’t be any happier than Coach Chot Reyes, as he finally witnessed his charges play in sync–a rarity during the eliminations.
“I think this is the first game in the whole conference that we had those three other guys in double figures,” the straightforward bench tactician said.
“Hindi magsabay-sabay na maganda ang laro ni Calvin, Roger, and Jayson eh, who are really our three vets, our three mainstays.”
And if it continues, especially in their rubber match this Saturday in Antipolo, the champion mentor likes TNT’s chances of coming out triumphant, which, needless to say, bodes well for their back-to-back aspirations.
“As long as we can get that kind of help around Bol, then we give ourselves better chances of winning,” said Reyes.
After all, the mentality has already shifted way before the elimination round came to a close, and they simply need to execute–and produce, of course.
“At that point hindi pa namin alam kung sino. But as far back as the Converge game, I was already conditioning my mind and the players that we have to beat somebody twice,” he said, referring to their loss to Converge last April 22.
“That’s been the focal point of the preparations even before the Ginebra game. We didn’t know who we were going to play, but our message was very simple: regardless of who we play, the important thing is we are at our sharpest come the quarterfinals.”
