TNT was looking for a good start against Meralco and Troy Rosario was all too ready to oblige.
Rosario sizzled for 14 of his game-high 22 points in the first half, pointing the KaTropa to a relatively trouble-free 99-81 victory over the Bolts Sunday in the PBA Philippine Cup at the Ynares Center in Antipolo.
Rosario made all of his first four triple tries in setting the tone for TNT before the likes of RR Garcia and Roger Pogoy took over in keeping TNT's head above water in a game watched by a sizable crowd at the hilltop venue.
With the Bolts failing to make any significant headway, Pogoy took it upon himself to spearhead a closing surge that had Garcia draining a triple that gave the KaTropa their biggest lead at 92-70.
"We knew going to this game that Meralco was undermanned, so ang mentality namin was to really take advantage of that," said TNT coach Nash Racela after his team recorded its first back-to-back victories in the tourney and improved to a 3-2 record in all.
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"Today, from the start to end, we were able to do that. The intensity level was consistent."
Not even Baser Amer's 20 points and similar double digit outputs from Jared Dillinger and Nino Canaleta could prevent Meralco from absorbing a third straight loss and dropping to a 1-3 slate.
In all, TNT made 18 of 40 three-point tries compared to Meralco's 13-of-31 shooting from beyond the arc. And completely dashing the Bolts' hopes was their 6-for-18 field shooting in the fourth period to the KaTropa's 10-for-20.
As a result, TNT easily overtook an early 0-1 deficit before going on to officially follow up its 92-83 win over Blackwater last Wednesday.
Rosario wound up making six of 10 three-point tries and also had 10 rebounds a day after celebrating his 26th birthday while Jayson Castro added three triples and Garcia and Ryan Reyes making two each.
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Spoiled was Canaleta receiving a plaque at halftime for being only the 87th player to reach the 5,000-point club in the 43-year-old league, a plateau he reached after scoring 16 in a 98-103 loss to Alaska last Jan. 10.
Garcia finished with 18 points and a game-high eight assists with Castro adding 12 points off the bench and Reyes and Semerad chipping in 10 markers apiece as starters.
Mostly, it's all about Rosario who sparked and fuelled TNT's early surge into a 16-3 lead.
With Garcia and Reyes taking over, the difference even reached a high of 34-18 before the KaTropa settled for a 46-36 lead at the half.
Meralco finally managed to stir into life in the third period with Dillinger's trey bringing the Bolts within 47-52.
That fire was quickly doused, however, when TNT went on a 10-3 tear to jack the lead back up to 12 and the KaTropa had little trouble taking a 73-62 spread into the fourth. (NC)
The scores:
TNT 99 - Rosario 22, Garcia 18, Pogoy 15, Castro 12, Reyes 10, Semerad 10, Hernandez 3, Carey 3, Williams 2, Torres 2, Tautuaa 2, Onwubere 0, Golla 0.
Meralco 81 - Amer 20, Dillinger 14, Canaleta 11, Tolomia 8, Newsome 6, Lanete 5, Hugnatan 4, Bono 4, Ballesteros 3, Faundo 3, Baracael 2, Sedurifa 1, Salva 0, Caram 0.
Quarters: 27-18, 46-36, 73-62, 99-81.
