Poy Erram submitted his best performance of the conference to date as TNT manhandled Meralco, 102-83, to move one win away from returning to the PBA Philippine Cup Finals, Sunday night at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.
Averaging just two points entering Game 4, the veteran big man punched in 27 points behind an excellent 9-of-11 shooting from the floor and nine rebounds as he keyed the Tropang 5G’s strong start toward taking the 3-1 series lead.
He already had 21 in the first half, including 12 in the opening period alone, as he set the tone in their favor before helping out in the third-quarter breakaway, ultimately enabling the crew to bounce back after losing the last time out.
(C) PBA Images
“When we reviewed the game, like I said, the last game, they came out with a great defensive game plan, and so we saw more clearly what they were doing, and we made the adjustment,” said head coach Chot Reyes.
“The reason why Calvin and Jordan weren’t getting their touches was that they did a great job denying. But when they do that, it opens up the inside, and that’s why Poy did a great job capitalizing on that,” he added.
Both Calvin Oftana and Jordan Heading were still far from the usual with only a combined 9-of-28 shooting from the field, but the duo still finished with 15 and 14 points, respectively, and accounted for five of the team’s 12 triples.
Kim Aurin chipped in 10 points off the bench, with Kelly Williams, Henry Galinato, and Kevin Ferrer chipping in seven apiece as the Tropa showed total team effort in notching the win despite losing star guard Roger Pogoy.
Pogoy suffered a hamstring injury at the 3:46-mark of the opening period and was never brought back in, becoming the latest to get hurt after Rey Nambatac, who played sparingly due to a sprained ankle he sustained in Game 3.
“Injuries are part of any kind of tournament, any kind of playoff run. Hopefully, it’s not too severe, but the way it looks, it’s not looking good,” lamented Reyes. “So we just have to continue to figure out ways, make adjustments.”
With their situation, TNT may have to play without Pogoy when they try to close out their foes in Game 5 this Wednesday at the SMART Araneta Coliseum.
(C) PBA Images
The Bolts themselves are dealing with injuries as well, with main man Chris Newsome a DNP after being diagnosed with an MCL sprain.
Needless to say, the team missed his services even with active consultant Nenad Vucinic back on the sidelines after attending a family matter abroad.
Chris Banchero led Meralco with 19 points. Cliff Hodge and CJ Cansino were his only support as the two finished with 18 points apiece in the loss.
The Scores:
TNT 102 – Erram 27, Heading 15, Oftana 14, Aurin 10, Williams 7, Galinato 7, Ferrer 7, Ganuelas-Rosser 6, Khobuntin 4, Jalalon 2, Nieto 2, Hill 1, Nambatac 0, Pogoy 0, Enciso 0.
Meralco 83 – Banchero 19, Hodge 17, Cansino 17, Caram 8, Black 8, Almazan 7, Quinto 3, Maliksi 2, Rios 2, Bates 0, Jose 0.
Quarterscores: 20-19, 45-38, 72-56, 102-83.
#WATCH: WE GOT A BREAK 🏀
Chot Reyes is glad to take a dominant 3-1 lead over Meralco, but is worried about the status of Roger Pogoy#ReadMore 👉 https://t.co/cbI1SFALac
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— Tiebreaker Times (@tiebreakertimes) January 11, 2026
