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| Jordan Heading, Kelly Williams, and the rest of the TNT Tropang 5G prevailed in a controversial Game 1. PBA Images |
QUEZON CITY--TNT's hot shooting from long range turned out to be enough to hold on against San Miguel in Game 1 of the PBA Philippine Cup Finals.
However, it was not without a controversial moment.
The Beermen fought back from 24 points down and were probably 56.1 seconds away from stealing the series opener after Mo Tautuaa's dunk attempt still went in despite the ball bouncing high above the rim first, giving them supposedly a 98-97 lead.
However, a jumpball situation between Chris Ross and Jordan Heading with 6.2 seconds left allowed the technical committee to look back at the Tautuaa dunk.
The officiating crew ruled that Tautuaa committed an offensive basket interference during his initially missed dunk and nullified the basket, bringing SMB back to 96.
Heading won the tip-off against Ross, and Calvin Oftana eventually hit two free throws with 3.2 seconds left for a 99-96 TNT lead.
CJ Perez tried to send the game into overtime, but his buzzer-beating three rimmed out.
While the Tropang 5G exited the Smart Araneta Coliseum hardwood rejoicing, the Beermen stayed on the court, still demanding an explanation as to why the referees overturned the Tautuaa deuce.
The SMB fans chimed in and rained the fabled arena with boos.
RR Pogoy waxed hot in the first three quarters and finished with 23 points on 7-of-11 shooting, including a perfect 2-for-2 on four-pointers, two rebounds, and two assists for TNT, now three wins away from completing only the PBA's sixth grand slam.
Heading added 19 points on 6-of-11 field goals, three rebounds, and six assists in a solid PBA Finals debut.
Overall, the team hit 20 long bombs, 17 from three-point range and three more from four-point range.
June Mar Fajardo willed SMB with 26 points, 15 rebounds, two blocks, and two steals, while Perez added 19 points, 11 rebounds, two assists, two steals, and one block.
Follow him on X: @IvanSaldajeno
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