By JAY R. GOTERA
MANILA — Standing on just one good foot, hulking import Joshua Smith scored the game-winning hook shot off June Mar Fajardo to lift the TNT KaTropa Texters to a thrilling 104-102 victory in Game 1 of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals Wednesday night.
With the clock ticking to the last second and the score deadlocked at 102-all, the 6’9” 360-pound Smith took matters into his own hands when he could not pass the ball to designated shooter Jayson Castro who could not get off his guard, Chris Ross.
"It was for Jayson. He wasn’t open. I caught the ball, I was looking for somebody to pass it to. Once there was nobody else I just decided to do it myself," said Smith, who was playing through a foot injury he suffered in the semifinals against the Barangay Ginebra Kings.
Smith finished with 21 points off the bench along with nine rebounds and two assists.
Rookie RR Pogoy also played a huge role in the TNT win, scoring a career-high and game-high 27 points, 13 of them in the fourth period. He had five three-pointers, one of which gave TNT a 10-point lead midway in the final quarter.
Although Castro shot just 6 of 17 from the floor, he nailed a clutch three with 44 seconds left to give the Texters a 102-99 lead. Castro finished with 14 points, 10 assists, and nine rebounds.
RR Garcia added 13 markers while Troy Rosario chipped in 10 points and six boards.
Smith is not the only injured TNT player. The Texters missed the services of veteran Ranidel de Ocampo (flu) and guard Ryan Reyes (sprained ankle).
The Beermen could not get most of their long-range shots to fall, nailing just six of 29 attempts from three-point range.
TNT’s pesky defense also led to a slew of SMB turnovers, which the Texters used to score 27 easy points.
Import Charles Rhodes led SMB with 31 points, 21 of them in the first quarter. However, he was held scoreless for the next two quarters. He also collected 13 rebounds, and four assists.
Fajardo posted 18 points and 13 rebounds, while Alex Cabagnot added 16 markers. Chris Ross and Arwind Santos scored 11 points each.
Game Friday: TNT KaTropa Texters vs. San Miguel Beermen (Game 2 of best-of-7 finals).
