Chot: That was part of the game

TNT coach Chot Reyes laments the controversial goaltending call during the crucial stretch of their 99-96 win over San Miguel Beer in Game 1 of their Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Philippine Cup best-of-seven finals series late Sunday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Still, the prized mentor believes that it was all part of the game.

“That was part of our game,” Reyes said during the post-game press conference.

“I’ve been on the opposite side of those breaks in the past, so it’s something very unfortunate and we’re able to take advantage of it.”

True enough, the Tropang 5G capitalized on the belated goaltending call that practically decided the outcome of what could have been an exciting opening salvo.

The controversial play had the 6-foot-8 Moala Tautuaa launching a powerful dunk off Kelly Williams. The ball bounced off the back of the cylinder before finally going in as Tautuaa was on his way down.

The basket allowed San Miguel to take control, 98-97, in the final 56 seconds after crawling from a deep 24-point hole early on.

But the officials pulled off a surprise when they announced in the next deadball situation that they were nullifying the basket due to offensive interference, putting the Beermen behind, 96-97, with only six seconds left. Calvin Oftana eventually nailed two free throws to seal the Tropang 5G victory.

At the buzzer, the San Miguel officials were furious while Tautuaa branded the decision as the “exact opposite of the right call.”

“I’m not gonna say much. You all saw the play. I don’t agree with the call,” Tautuaa said.

“That’s the exact opposite of a right call. Let us decide the game. It’s simple. But the game went on.”

Reyes, however, stressed that they were “fortunate” to escape from what could have been a monumental collapse that would have a serious consequence to their bid to win a rare grand slam.

“Good thing there was a break, and during that jump ball, they were able to review it,” the outspoken Reyes said, agreeing with the decision of game officials.

“Just when it happened, we were already saying that it looked like an offensive interference.”

“And we’re very fortunate because it was reversed because it could have been a different story if not.”