THE field is down to four teams in the PBA Season 50 Commissioner's Cup, with the semifinals now featuring a mix of proven champions, rising contenders, and a familiar team peaking at the perfect time. The semifinal picture was completed after Rain or Shine Elasto Painters stunned San Miguel Beermen to book a showdown against crowd favorite Barangay Ginebra . On the other side, defending champion TNT Tropang 5G overwhelmed top seed NLEX Road Warriors, setting up another playoff collision with the battle-tested Meralco Bolts, who survived a grueling series against Magnolia Hotshots.
TNT VS. MERALCO
When: Friday, May 22. 7:30 p.m.
Where: SM Mall of Asia Arena
TNT goes for win No. 2
TNT seeks for its second win in the semifinals after beating Meralco, 94-89. The Tropang 5G led by as many as 11 points in the second quarter, but the Bolts found a way to close the gap and even take a 73-69 lead, until Bol Bol, Calvin Oftana, and the rest of TNT finished off Meralco.
Free throw shooting
If there is an area that needs improvement for TNT, it is their free throw shooting. Bol Bol shot a miserable 5-of-13 from the free throw line, and Calvin Oftana going 2-of-5. The entire team went 12-of-25 from the charity stripe, but the good thing was that it didn’t cost TNT.
Meralco also needs to improve its shooting
Meralco lost the game after shooting only 36-of-81 from the field (44 percent). Marvin Jones was only 9-of-24 from the field, including a 1-of-7 clip from threes, while the likes of Chris Banchero (2-of-8) and Jason Brickman (3-of-9) misfired most of the time for Meralco.
Bol Bol facilitating
Bol Bol had his usual numbers of 37 points, 11 rebounds, and six blocks. But his conference-high eight assists was perhaps what made his performance in Game 1 very impressive as he displayed unselfishness that led to the victory over Meralco. If that continues, TNT would most likely win again.
[8] TNT Tropang 5G vs. [4] Meralco Bolts
Two of the top defensive teams in differing ways go head-to-head. For TNT's third rated defense of 107.5 points per 100 possessions, they rely on funnelling the opposing offense to Bol Bol's rim protection.
On the other hand, the fourth-best defense of Meralco that only allows 107.9 points per 100 possessions prides itself on scheme versatility through their personnel.
So the important aspect for this series is which team can find the pressure points on the defensive end to outscore the other team.
X-factor for TNT: RR Pogoy's ability to punish mismatches
Just like in previous conferences, the effective template for RR Pogoy has been to attack smaller guards and force the defense into rotation.
After TNT's local crew initially struggled to find its offensive flow around Bol Bol, they were eventually unlocked behind the triumvirate of Calvin Oftana, Jayson Castro and Pogoy.
Outside of his playoff career-high of 36 points in Game 5 against the same TNT squad during the Philippine Cup semifinals, the series largely turned into an uphill battle for Cansino defensively.
TNT consistently attacked him through smaller guards off the dribble to generate straight-line drives, while RR Pogoy repeatedly hunted him in the post to capitalize on the size mismatch.
The concern for Meralco is that the same issue resurfaced in their recent quarterfinal victory over Magnolia. With Magnolia deploying speedy guards like Jerom Lastimosa and Mark Barroca, Cansino's lateral quickness was repeatedly tested, leading to multiple paint touches and forcing the Bolts' defense into rotation.
That is why it becomes important for Cansino to fully embrace where his true value lies to help Meralco be on the winning side this time versus TNT. The former UP Fighting Maroons wing has already shown he can become Meralco's top local scorer in 14 games so far in the conference, averaging 15.4 points per game.
But against TNT's dribble-drive attack, his ability to hold his ground defensively and survive switches may ultimately determine how long he can stay effective on the floor.
Prediction: TNT in six. It looks like a bad matchup for Meralco, as the Tropang 5G have the players to expose them.
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