Tropang 5G crush Giant Risers to gain revenge, return above .500

TNT responded to its first-round loss to Titan Ultra with a dominant performance, routing the Giant Risers, 114-80, in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Season 50 Governors’ Cup on Saturday at the Ynares Center II in Montalban, Rizal.

The Tropang 5G quickly erased memories of their 103-87 defeat to Titan Ultra last July 22, racing to a 34-21 lead after the opening quarter and controlling the game from start to finish.

Titan Ultra briefly threatened a comeback in the fourth quarter, cutting what had been a 26-point deficit to 14. However, TNT regained its composure and closed out the contest with another strong surge to secure the 34-point victory.

The win allowed the defending champions to bounce back from their 88-83 loss to NLEX last Tuesday and improve to 4-3 in Group A. TNT remains in third place behind the unbeaten Road Warriors (6-1) and San Miguel Beermen (5-2).

“We made a concerted effort to focus on defense,” said TNT coach Chot Reyes. “Even when we lost to NLEX, I thought we played great, great defense; we just couldn't put enough points on the board because we didn't have Jordan and Roger.”

“Thankfully, tonight, we had both of them in ... it was a big thing that we have an almost complete complement at our disposal today,” he added.

Jordan Heading led TNT with 23 points and five assists after providing a major boost off the bench. Rahlir Hollis-Jefferson recorded another double-double with 19 points and 12 rebounds.

Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser also scored 19 points, including nine in the opening quarter, while adding four rebounds and four assists.

Rey Nambatac contributed 14 points, five rebounds, and eight assists, while Kim Aurin chipped in 12 points.

TNT will face NLEX again on Tuesday, August 11, at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.

Titan Ultra, meanwhile, dropped to 2-6 and remained at the bottom of Group A despite Tirrell Brown’s double-double effort of 14 points and 11 rebounds.

Bryan Sajonia and Jerrick Balanza added 13 points each, while Ato Ular finished with 10 points for the Giant Risers, who failed to follow up on their previous win over Macau.

Titan Ultra will try to bounce back against San Miguel on Wednesday, August 12, in Antipolo. The Giant Risers will look to avenge their previous 143-105 loss to the Beermen last July 29.