BRIAN "Scotty" Hopson came up clutch at the endgame to lift Converge to a pulsating 96-95 squeaker over TNT Tuesday and get back on track in the PBA Governors' Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Hopson punctuated his 32-point game with a huge four-pointer that gave the FiberXers the one-point edge in the last 3.6 seconds before he added on to his heroics with a block on the driving Rondae Hollis-Jefferson just before the final buzzer went off.
"Coming to this game, coming off a loss, we just banked on really playing together. Playing hard, trying to sustain it, not being down by a lot and... hopefully get that chance to win," said interim head coach Franco Atienza while lauding the league's decision to reward shots launched from 27 feet out.
"Without the four-point line, we're going to overtime, but I don't know about our chances," stated Atienza after the win that erased Converge's 93-105 loss to Magnolia and gave it a 2-1 record and a tie for the Group A lead with its most recent victim.
Completely overshadowed were Hollis-Jefferson's own 32-point game which featured four straight charities that gave TNT a 95-93 cushion going to the last 9.6 seconds of play.
Sponsored content:
Hopson, however, was there to save the day by dribbling to his right to get a bit of separation from Glenn Khobuntin and launching the league's first four-point game-winner.
"In situations like that, I get real calm and let my instincts take over," related Hopson, who also wound up with 10 rebounds and four assists.
"I've made shots like that my whole career, in terms of game-winners," added Hopson. "This was just another one that went in and... thank God I put all those hours in by myself on the court when nobody's watching."
The Tropang Giga were actually in control for most of the game and even led by as many as 56-40 at the half, but were clearly shaken when the FiberXers started stirring into full life starting in the third period.
Justin Arana, Alec Stockton, Schonny Winston and even Alex Cabagnot were there to help Hopson out and their efforts were rewarded when Converge even took an 86-83 lead.
Sponsored content:
Hollis-Jefferson, who also had 15 rebounds and six assists, gave TNT back a 91-89 lead with a triple before answering Cabagnot's three-point play with his charities that gave the Tropa the lead for the last time.
Calvin Oftana was the lone other TNT player in double figures with 22 points and 10 rebounds, while Winston, Arana, Kevin Racal and Cabagnot provided at least 10 points each for Converge.
Stockton only had eight points but did haul down 10 rebounds of his own. (NC)
The Scores:
CONVERGE 96 - Hopson 32, Winston 14, Arana 13, Racal 12, Cabagnot 10, Stockton 8, Santos 5, Delos Santos 2, Ambohot 0, Andrade 0, Caralipio 0, Nieto 0.
TNT 95 - Hollis-Jefferson 32, Oftana 22, Castro 8, Aurin 7, Khobuntin 7, Nambatac 6, Heruela 5, Erram 5, Pogoy 3, Payawal 0.
QUARTERS: 16-29, 40-53, 64-70, 96-95
