RR Pogoy sizzles as TNT dominates Meralco for third win in a row

RR Pogoy caught fire in fourth quarter to will the streaking TNT to a 101-84 win over Meralco in the PBA Philippine Cup on Sunday at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.

The sharp-shooting guard dropped 16 points in the final frame alone to finish with a team-high 34 points on 5-of-8 shooting from downtown while also grabbing three rebounds, one steal, and one block as the Tropang Giga have now won three games in a row for a 3-3 card.

Before that, TNT saw its Grand Slam bid in danger when the wards of head coach Chot Reyes lost three successive matches.

Pogoy knew what was at stake as he took charge in the fourth.

The former FEU standout buried three straight three-pointers as they turned a 69-72 deficit by the end of the third to an 86-78 cushion midway to the fourth.

He then knocked down a huge four-point shot to send TNT to a 97-82 advantage with 1:08 left in the game before Calvin Oftana sealed it with a long triple of his own.

Oftana also ended up with 5-of-8 from rainbow country to tally 28 points laced with five rebounds, three assists, two steals, and one block.

Rey Nambatac, who was limited to just two points at halftime, finished with 13 points, five rebounds, and five assists while Poy Erram chipped in 10 markers.

Cliff Hodge paced Meralco with 23 points, four rebounds, and two assists while Chris Newsome chimed in with 18 markers.

The Bolts have now slipped to 3-4, losing four of their last five games after kicking off their title defense with back-to-back wins against Converge and Terrafirma.

Scores:

TNT 101 – Pogoy 34, Oftana 28, Nambatac 13, Erram 10, Khobuntin 6, Williams 6, Enciso 4, Heruela 0, Varilla 0, Aurin 0.

Meralco 84 – Hodge 23, Newsome 18, Black 15, Almazan 12, Quinto 11, Banchero 3, Cansino 2, Bates 0, Jose 0, Maguliano 0, Rios 0.

Quarters: 14-19, 45-40, 69-72, 101-84.

—JKC, GMA Integrated News