The TNT Tropang Giga are two wins away from booking their spot in the semifinals of the 2024 PBA Governors’ Cup after a thrilling win in Game 1 against the NLEX Road Warriors. Will the Tropang Giga pull away further from NLEX with another win this Friday? Or, will the Road Warriors tie the series?
Catch this game live on Friday, September 27 at 7:30 pm, Manila time.
NLEX Road Warriors (0-1)
Projected Starting Five:
- Robert Bolick
- Richie Rodger
- Enoch Valdez
- Michael Miranda
- DeQuan Jones
The Road Warriors failed to pull off an upset in Game 1 of this series but they showed they can make TNT sweat. NLEX built a lead as big as 13 in the series opener but saw that advantage eventually evaporate as the Tropang Giga mounted an eventually successful comeback.
DeQuan Jones led NLEX with 38 points on 11/19 shooting from the field but Robert Bolick only had 10 points on just eight attempts. Bolick will have to shoot more as one of the main gunners of NLEX. It is also worth noting that Jones and Bolick were minus-11 and minus-10, respectively in Game 1 – they were the only NLEX starters with a negative plus/minus, for what it’s worth. The Road Warriors as a whole will also have to win the possession battle after getting massively outshot by TNT in Game 1. The Road Warriors only had 71 attempts from the field while TNT had 88.
TNT Tropang Giga (1-0)
Projected Starting Five:
- Rey Nambatac
- RR Pogoy
- Calvin Oftana
- Glenn Khobuntin
- Rondae Hollis-Jefferson
The Tropang Giga continues to shine. After going 6-1 to end its group play schedule, TNT showed what it’s made of with a comeback win in Game 1. Other teams might have folded after being down that big, but the Tropang Giga are an experienced bunch with great young talents as well.
The duo of Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and Calvin Oftama came through in the clutch for TNT, as they played a big role in a 7-0 salvo that helped the Tropang Giga break away from NLEX late in the fourth quarter. Slowing down TNT is one thing, but doing that for an entire game will always be a tall order for opponents, including NLEX, which let RHJ finish with 45 points. Although TNT shot just 43.2 percent from the field, they made up for it with volume shooting from the field and from the free-throw line. The Tropang Giga had 30 attempts from the charity stripe to just 21 from NLEX.
Picks
Spread: TNT (-6.5)
Over/Under: Under (197.0)
