Henry Galinato of TNT challenges the defense of Ramon Cao of Hong Kong Eastern in their PBA Governors’ Cup. PBA photo
Vengeful win for Eastern
HONGKONG Eastern bounced back from a tough loss to Rain or Shine by beating debuting TNT Tropang Giga, 105-84, in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Malate, Manila.
Former All-FIBA Europe Cup First Team member Cameron Clark stood at the forefront of the guest team as he exploded with 36 points on 14-of-26 shooting from the field, 14 rebounds and three assists in almost 39 minutes of action.
Veterans Hayden Blankley scored 12 of his 24 points in the fourth quarter, including a four-point play, while also contributing 10 rebounds and three blocks as Eastern moved up to 3-1 win-loss record.
Glen Yang, who returned to action after missing the game against the E-Painters due to passport issues, added 19 points, eight assists, and six rebounds.
Ramon Cao chipped in 17 points, including 12 during a decisive third-quaretr breakway that saw Eastern outscore TNT, 26-16.
PBA Best Import awardee Rondae Hollis-Jefferson tallied 33 points on 12-of-22 shooting on top of seven rebounds in 38 minutes of play for the Tropang Giga, which played its first game since capturing the PBA Governors’ Cup.
Kim Aurin added 12 points RR Pogoy had nine.
The Tropang Giga played without veterans Jayson Castro and Kelly Williams, and Poy Erram, who was ejected early in the first quarter after being called for a flagrant foul penalty two for a hit on Yang.
Eastern managed to pull this off despite arriving late at the NAS due to traffic delays while traveling from their hotel in Quezon City.
The team conducted their pre-game routines on the bus and headed straight to the court for warm-ups as soon as they reached the Malate venue.
“We didn’t play well in our last game against Rain or Shine so all of us were mad after the game. So we analyzed, watched videos and figured out what exactly was the problem,” said coach Mensur Bajramovic.
The scores:
Eastern (105) — Clark 36, Blankley 24, Yang 19, Cao 17, Lam 3, Cheung 3, Xu 2, Zhu 1, Sulaiman 0, Chan 0, Guinchard 0.
TNT (84) — Hollis-Jefferson 33, Aurin 12, Pogoy 9, Oftana 7, Khobuntin 4, Ebona 4, Erram 4, Exciminiano 4, Galinato 3, Razon 2, Nambatac 2, Heruela 0, Varilla 0, Payawal 0.
Quarterscores: 21-22, 47-47, 73-63, 105-84.
Games Sunday:
(Ynares Center-Antipolo)
5 p.m.– TNT vs. Northport
7:30 p.m.– NLEX vs. San Miguel
