Tyler Tio rose to the occasion as Phoenix outlasted TNT in overtime, 100-97, to move closer to clinching a quarterfinal spot in the PBA Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup at the SMART Araneta Coliseum, Friday evening.
The deadshot guard showed nerves of steel in the clutch, banking in the marginal trifecta with 1.8 seconds left to play to save the Fuel Masters after the crew lost Ricci Rivero due to a deep cut he suffered off a Jayson Castro foul.
Roger Pogoy could only heave from beyond halfcourt as the Tropang 5G no longer had timeouts, and the crew of Coach Charles Tiu would erupt in jubilation as they upended the defending conference champions in a classic bout.
Not only did they bounce back from that humiliating loss to Converge, but Phoenix revived its Top Four hopes as well after improving to 6-4.
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“We knew how important this game was for us, and we really played well … we were up for the challenge, and I really appreciate the way they played, and it just feels good to pull off this upset win,” said Tiu shortly after the match.
Thanks to Tio, the others’ efforts were saved, including Rivero’s, as he finished with 31 points and 11 rebounds before sustaining the unfortunate injury.
His game-winner also gave Johnathan Williams a winning welcome in his return, although the former Best Import did his part as well by finishing with 22 points, 15 rebounds, six assists, and a steal in nearly 45 minutes of action.
“I was kinda rusty out there today, but Ricci [Rivero], Tyler [Tio], Perk (Jason Perkins), the rest of the guys, KT (Kenneth Tuffin)… they came up and made big shots, got big time stops, also in overtime and in the fourth quarter,” he said.
Jason Perkins made 15 points and seven rebounds. Tio had 14 points while Kenneth Tuffin played solidly once more with 11 points and 12 rebounds.
Perkins and Tio, in particular, were actually the two whom Tiu picked from to sub in and take the free throws supposedly for Rivero, but ultimately went with the young guard who only made one, thus giving them a 97-95 lead.
TNT was able to tie things up behind Bol Bol, but then, Tio would go on to hammer the back-breaking trey against the defense of the 7-foot-3 beanpole.
“I was picking between him and Perk kung sino magfi-free throw when Ricci was hurt, pero na-miss niya ‘yung isa. Thankfully, he was able to more than make up for it with the game-winner,” related the 37-year-old bench tactician.
Phoenix will now look to sweep its remaining games — Macau on May 6 and San Miguel Beer on May 9 — to strengthen its bid for a Top-Four finish.
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Bol led the Tropang 5G with 30 points and 20 rebounds in the loss, in which they lost hold of an 87-81 lead with seven minutes left in regulation.
Calvin Oftana had 22 points and six rebounds. Pogoy made 17 points and seven rebounds while Jayson Castro and Glenn Khobuntin added 11 markers apiece for the flagship MVP franchise, which dropped to sixth with a 6-4 card as well.
The Tropang 5G will look to finish their elimination round on a high when they face Magnolia and Barangay Ginebra on May 5 and May 10, respectively.
The Scores:
Phoenix 100 – Rivero 31, Williams 22, Perkins 15, Tio 13, Tuffin 11, Santos 5, Delos Santos 2, Ynot 0, Daves 0, Nelle 0, Escandor 0.
TNT 97 – Bol 30, Oftana 22, Pogoy 17, Khobuntin 11, Castro 11, Williams 2, Galinato 2, Heading 2, Nambatac 0, Enciso 0, Nieto 0, Ganuelas-Rosser 0.
Quarterscores: 24-20, 48-51, 74-73, 91-91, 100-97.
