TNT pulls away in Q4 to tie finals vs. Ginebra

Rondae Hollis-Jefferson had himself a huge night for TNT. Dennis Acosta

By Ivan Saldajeno

QUEZON CITY—TNT recovered in time after Ginebra tried to turn things around in the third quarter en route to a 95-82 win in Game 2 of the PBA Governors' Cup Finals on Wednesday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

The Tropang Giga eventually sustained a solid start after bouncing back in the fourth quarter after the Gin Kings made the game interesting in the third.

TNT came alive early on and opened a 27-16 advantage against Ginebra after the first quarter en route to a 51-39 lead at halftime.

The Gin Kings slowed the Tropang Giga down in the third period and cut the lead down to just three, 69-66, entering the fourth.

TNT, though, pulled away for good in the final frame as their offense got going again.

Rondae Hollis-Jefferson flirted with a rare 20-20 triple-double as he finished with 23 points, 19 rebounds, and nine assists with two assists for the Tropang Giga, who tied the best-of-seven series at one game apiece.

Mikey Williams added 21 points, four rebounds, three assists, and one steal, while Calvin Oftana chipped in 14 points, 13 rebounds, and two steals.

Christian Standhardinger led the Gin Kings with 29 points, 11 rebounds, two assists, and one steal, while Scottie Thompson had 16 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, and one steal.

Justin Brownlee was held to only 12 points on 3-for-16 shooting, but he still came close to a triple-double with 10 rebounds and eight assists with two blocks.

The Scores:

TNT 95 – Hollis-Jefferson 23, M.Williams 21, Pogoy 17, Oftana 14, Khobuntin 8, Castro 8, Erram 4, Montalbo 0, Marcelo 0, Ganuelas-Rosser 0

GINEBRA 82 – Standhardinger 29, Malonzo 17, Thompson 16, Brownlee 12, Pringle 5, Gray 3, Pinto 0, David 0, Mariano 0

QUARTERS: 27-16, 51-39, 67-64, 95-82

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