Roger Pogoy chooses to obey the TNT medical team’s advice to rest for Game 3 of their PBA Philippine Cup semifinal series versus Rain or Shine on Sunday.
The Tropang 5G wish to play it smart while dealing with the two-way star’s hamstring injury that flared up early in Game 2 on Friday. It reduced him to a spectator the rest of the night, although his team managed to escape narrowly.
“Sabi rin na pahinga muna talaga,” he said moments after their 108-101 overtime win at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium for the 2-0 lead in the race-to-4 affair.
Pogoy went down at the 11:06-mark of the second period when he took off for a layup as he tried to finish the break and trim a 31-21 deficit.
Usually durable, the 33-year-old guard had to be subbed out and no longer returned, cutting short what could’ve been another solid night for him.
He already had 11 points to his tally before going down as he looked to replicate his Game 1 exploits last Wednesday, where he poured 28 points — 13 of which he manufactured in the final frame — to steer them to the 98-91 win.
“Sabi ko nga sa PT namin, parang nafi-feel ko na,” he recalled. “Tapos nun, nung pagbalik, pa-layup ako, walang lakas. Sabi ko, ‘di muna [ilaro pa].”
Pogoy admitted that he’s been bothered by left hamstring issues since their second do-or-die game against Magnolia in the quarterfinals.
Still, he chose to play through it in the semis’ curtain-raiser and performed as if there was no problem at all, only for the injury to worsen two nights later.
“Game Two pa lang ng Magnolia may nararamdaman na ‘ko. Nilaro ko lang,” he said. “Game One meron na ‘kong nafi-feel. Ta’s kanina, parang na-feel ko.”
Pogoy has now become the latest addition to TNT’s growing list of injured players, joining Jayson Castro, Rey Nambatac, and Brian Heruela.
“Sobrang challenging kasi ang dami nang nado-down sa amin, tapos alam niyo naman na may goal talaga,” he lamented. “Kailangan manalo, mag-Finals.
“Pero ganun talaga. Pagdaanan muna ‘yung hirap bago ka mag-champion, bago ka mag-Finals,” he added as they’re hoping to achieve a rare Grand Slam.
Despite their predicament, the Tropang 5G have managed to find ways. In fact, they’re unbeaten thus far in the playoffs, and are now two wins away from ousting the Elasto Painters and returning to the Finals for a third straight time.
That’s why Pogoy still beamed with pride even though down about his situation, as the others personified the ‘next man up’ mantra.
He’s particularly proud of his ‘amigo’ in Calvin Oftana, who took it upon himself to lead the offense in the absence of the FEU product and went on to finish with 39 points alongside nine rebounds and three blocks.
The athletic wing was responsible for sending the game into an extra five minutes, knocking down three pressure-packed free throws to make it a 99-all count late in regulation before triggering the decisive 8-0 run in OT.
“Hats off talaga kay amigo Calvin,” said Pogoy of his Gilas teammate with a smile. “Sabi ko nga sa kanya, ‘Amigo, wala ako, hindi ko na kaya bumalik, ikaw na bahala.’ Sabi niya, ‘Sige.’ Sabi nga niya, ‘Ako bahala sa’yo.’
“Pero hindi lang si migo. Pati si Kim Aurin, ang ganda ng pinakita; Almond Vosotros. Lahat-lahat ng players, nag-step up talaga. Ganun naman talaga kami. Ilan na nga ‘yung injured namin eh ‘di ba, ganun talaga.”
#WATCH: HINDI NAMAN SIYA GRABE 🙏
Roger Pogoy talks about his lingering injury flared up in Game 2 of the #PBA2025 Philippine Cup semis 🏀
🎥 @justinebacnis /Tiebreaker Times pic.twitter.com/K71GRQTE6f
— Tiebreaker Times (@tiebreakertimes) June 27, 2025
