Coming off a game where they shot 102 attempts, the TNT Katropa were much more efficient in their second game of the 2017-18 PBA Philippine Cup that helped lead to a 106-98 win, Friday evening at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City.
For Coach Nash Racela, third-year big man Mo Tautuaa was the best player who exemplified this as he scored 18 points on 8-for-12 shooting to go along with nine rebounds and a block.
“Good choice. Very efficient. That’s what we need from our players, efficiency,” said second-year TNT head coach Nash Racela. “We told them that they will get shorter minutes but with it, they need to perform at a high level.
“Mo is the perfect example. He played lesser minutes than Kelly [Williams] but he was very efficient,” Racela furthered about the first overall pick in the 2015 PBA Rookie Draft.
Tautuaa set the tone early scoring 10 points in the opening frame. This was then followed up by a 12-point second quarter by Troy Rosario that gave TNT the lead for good. Rosario added 19 points and eight rebounds.
“It’s always hard to get the first win especially with our next game being against San Miguel,” added Racela as TNT will enter the new year with a 1-1 record. “At least we got some sort of momentum before we face the best team in the league.”
TNT went on an 7-2 run to start the final frame that was punctuated by a dunk by Rosario that gave TNT its biggest lead of the game, 88-74, with 9:35 left. The duo of Jayson Castro and RR Garcia kept Alaska at bay in the closing minutes before Alaska rookie Jeron Teng made the score more respectable by draining two threes in the final 40 seconds of the contest.
Castro had 20 points, six rebounds, and six assists while Garcia, who is making his season debut, chipped in 11 points off the bench.
Rookie Sidney Onwubere, who guarded Calvin Abueva for most of the game, also made his PBA debut, scoring six points and grabbing nine rebounds.
“The reason why they got longer minutes today because we are undermanned. [Alex] Nuyles and [Anthony] Semerad are both injured,” Racela shared. “That’s what we tell our second and third groups, to always be ready. We know what Sidney, Mac, and Monbert could bring to the table. Sidney showed what he can do, that he can contribute on both offense and defense.”
Teng paced the struggling Aces with 28 points on 10-for-18 shooting to go along with 10 rebounds, five assists, and four steals. Fellow La Sallian Jvee Casio had 17 points on 8-for-13 shooting.
Despite scoring 16 markers, Abueva struggled from the field, going just 6-for-18. He was able to gobble down nine rebounds but commmitted a game-high five turnovers.
TNT will next face arch-rivals San Miguel Beermen on Saturday, January 13 in Ilo-ilo City. Alaska, on the other hand, takes on the Meralco Bolts on Wednesday, January 10 at the SMART-Araneta Coliseum.
The Scores:
TNT (106) – Castro 20, Rosario 19, Tautuaa 18, Garcia 11, Williams 9, Pogoy 9, Reyes 6, Torres 6, Onwubere 4, Tallo 2, Arong 2, Carey 0.
Alaska (98) – Teng 28, Casio 17, Abueva 16, Magat 9, Thoss 6, Galliguez 5, Pascual 5, Banchero 4, Cruz 4, Manuel 2, Racal 2, Exciminiano 0.
Quarterscores: 29-30, 56-49, 81-72, 106-98.
