Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — The TNT KaTropa edged out the San Miguel Beermen, 87-85, to level their Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Philippine Cup semifinals series at one game apiece Friday evening at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Troy Rosario bounced back from a scoreless game one with 14 markers, while Ranidel De Ocampo added 13 of his own.
It was a better start for the KaTropa this time around, as they battled to carry a 20-15 advantage into the second frame.
Eager to prevent the Beermen from clawing their way back to the game, TNT pushed their advantage to as much as 35-24 with 6:10 to play before the halftime break.
San Miguel was able to take back the lead in the third period via an Arwind Santos triple to make it 54-53 with 4:08 left before the payoff period. But the KaTropa would not be denied.
TNT would regain the lead and pushed their advantage up to 75-64 with 8:49 left to play in the final quarter.
The Beermen refused to give in, forcing their way back into the contest and taking an 82-80 lead with with 2:36 left to play.
But clutch shots from Castro, R.R. Pogoy, and Ranidel De Ocampo, as well as defensive stops down the stretch preserved the victory for the KaTropa.
JuneMar Fajardo finished with a game-high 25 points, while Alex Cabagnot finished with 24.
TNT head coach Nash Racela said that he was expecting the game to go down to the very last possession.
“We conditioned our minds that it was going to be close,” Racela said. “Good thing the players were locked in today.”
TNT and San Miguel will break the deadlock in Game 3 on Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
