TNT Tropang 5G’s Calvin Oftana during the PBA Philippine Cup semifinals against Rain or Shine Elasto Painters. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines—TNT lost its main gunner early in Game 2 of the PBA Philippine Cup semifinals against Rain or Shine, but the Tropang 5G still had their old reliable to pull off the win.
TNT mounted a 2-0 series lead over the Elasto Painters after gutting out a 113-105 overtime victory, thanks to another heroic night from Calvin Oftana.
READ: PBA: Calvin Oftana stars as TNT survives Rain or Shine for 2-0 lead
Oftana used Roger Pogoy’s absence late in the game as motivation to fuel his hot-shooting night that pushed TNT closer to its third straight Finals appearance.
“He (Pogoy) told me, ‘amigo, it’s up to you now.’ He’s been nursing that [hamstring] pain since the previous game but it was just too much tonight so I just told him, ‘I got this,’” said Oftana at Ninoy Aquino Stadium on Friday.
“Luckily, we also have our ‘magic bunots,’ Mike (Nieto), Kim (Aurin), they’re some big help for us,” he added, giving credit to the Tropang 5G’s bench in the process.
TNT Tropang 5G’s Roger Pogoy during the PBA Philippine Cup semifinals. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRER.net
Oftana fired a game-high 39 points and grabbed nine rebounds, including three clutch free throws in the dying seconds of regulation to force the game into overtime.
The Gilas Pilipinas forward’s standout performance came just in time after Pogoy’s early exit.
In the opening seconds of the second quarter, Pogoy went up for a layup but landed awkwardly, aggravating his hamstring in the process. He was subbed out for Jordan Heading and never returned.
“I tip my hat off to my amigo. I told him that I really can’t come back and he told me he got it,” said Pogoy. “All of the players stepped up and that’s how we really are. We have so many injured players, right? It is what it is.”
Helping Oftana keep Rain or Shine at bay were Heading, Nieto and Aurin, who scored 13, seven and seven points, respectively.
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TNT looks to ride Oftana’s momentum on Sunday and seize a pivotal 3-0 lead at Araneta Coliseum.