MANILA, Philippines – Gone are the days when Jayson Castro used to torch opponents at the international level for Gilas Pilipinas.
But on Thursday, February 6, Castro proved a thorn in the side of a foreign team as he guided TNT to the semifinals of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup following a 109-93 win over guest squad Eastern at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
Castro, 38, dropped 13 of his 16 points in a pivotal third quarter, where the twice-to-beat Tropang Giga pulled away after a nip-and-tuck first half that saw seven lead changes and ended with them holding a slim 51-50 edge.
“We want to make it to the finals. As one of the veterans in the team, I need to be a good example. Those were my motivations,” said Castro.
Castro rose to the occasion after getting scolded by head coach Chot Reyes for an “unacceptable effort” in their loss to Rain or Shine at the end of the elimination round.
Limited to just 3 points in the first half, “The Blur” turned it up a notch and picked the Eastern defense apart in the third quarter, even ending the period with a late layup that gave TNT an 80-73 advantage en route to the romp.
“Jayson is the perfect example of the ability and the willingness to accept negative feedback and use it,” said Reyes. “We’re very direct, but everything is for the good of the team.”
For Castro, the fact that he still gets called out highlights his importance.
“Thank you to coach for scolding me because that means I still have value for the team,” said Castro, who is playing in his 16th season for the Tropang Giga.
Import Rondae Hollis-Jefferson paced TNT anew with 31 points, 15 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals, while Rey Nambatac finished with 18 points as he picked up where Castro left off by scattering 11 points in the fourth quarter.
Poy Erram supplied 15 points, 7 rebounds, and 3 blocks, while Calvin Oftana had 12 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 steals in the win.
Back-to-back three-pointers by Nambatac and Oftana opened a 101-84 lead, with the Tropang Giga taking the fight out of a worn out Eastern side that played two games in different countries in a span of 24 hours.
Eastern absorbed an 87-61 beating from the Taoyuan Pauian Pilots in Taiwan in the East Asia Super League on Wednesday and flew straight to the Philippines to face TNT.
Hayden Blankley put up 24 points and 7 rebounds to pace seventh seed Eastern, which ended its PBA campaign with three straight losses.
Cameron Clark, who tallied 16 points and 8 rebounds, returned as import as he replaced Chris McLaughlin.
The Scores
TNT 109 – Hollis-Jefferson 31, Nambatac 18, Castro 16, Oftana 12, Erram 15, Pogoy 6, Williams 6, Aurin 4, Khobuntin 1.
Eastern 93 – Blankley 24, Clark 16, Yang 14, Lam 11, Chan 9, Zhu 8, Guincahrd 5, Xu 4, Cao 2, Leung 0.
Quarters: 27-24, 51-50, 80-73, 109-93.
– Rappler.com