TNT enters QF with banged-up roster

CHOT Reyes’ biggest concern heading to the playoffs is how healthy his TNT veterans will be.

For one, veteran lead guard Jayson Castro has been playing through a knee injury, while evergreen big man Kelly Williams is dealing a back spasm

Both long-time TNT superstars summoned the will and the strength to play through injuries to lead the Tropang Giga to a gutsy 98-93 win over the Magnolia Hotshots on Sunday at the close of the PBA Season 48 Philippine Cup elimination round.

Chot Reyes TMT FILE PHOTO 

Williams led TNT with 19 points, eight rebounds and four assists, while Castro had 18, four boards and seven dimes as the Tropang Giga closed the elims at fourth spot to arrange a best-of-three quarterfinal series against Rain or Shine.

TNT, Rain or Shine, NLEX and Magnolia finished the elims with similar 6-5 records, but the Tropang Giga and the Elasto Painters occupied the higher placing due to better quotients.

Now that the elims are behind them, Reyes said their focus shifts on Rain or Shine, a team that made it to the quarterfinals after overcoming a 0-4 start en route to winning six of its last seven games.

And for the Tropang Giga to beat the red-hot Elasto Painters in the race-to-two wins series, Reyes again harped on the importance of playing 48-minute basketball.

“I’ve talked about our need to play a complete 48-minute game because all our games, whether we won or lost it, we were down 15 or 16 points. I think this is the first game we were not down by a double digit margin,” shared Reyes.

Ranged against a young Rain or Shine team that thrives on a fast-paced game and three-point shooting, Reyes admitted they will have their work cut out for them.

The outspoken TNT coach is hopeful that Castro and Williams will recover soon, knowing Rain or Shine is no easy opponent.

“The only way we can compete with them is everyone to be on board,” he said.