RIVALRY IGNITES

Game today:

(Smart Araneta Coliseum)

7:30 p.m. — San Miguel vs TNT

Whatever the effect of the controversial series opener between the TNT Tropang 5G and San Miguel Beer will be answered in Game 2 of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Philippine Cup finals today at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Will the Tropang 5G use the momentum to double their best-of-seven series lead or will it fire up the Beermen to equalize?

Game time is set at 7:30 p.m.

TNT pulled off a 99-96 escape win in Game 1 last Sunday in a battle marred by a dramatic turn of events after a late nullification of San Miguel forward Mo Tautuaa’s slam dunk.

Tautuaa’s slam with 56.1 seconds remaining that gave the Beermen a one-point lead was waved off after a review with 6.2 ticks left, which suddenly saw San Miguel falling behind by one.

It was a dampener for the Beermen after their effort to overhaul a 24-point deficit went down the drain due to a controversial call decided by the league’s technical committee led by deputy commissioner Eric Castro.

San Miguel head coach Leo Austria has expressed disappointment over a potential victory that slipped out of the Beermen’s hands.

But San Miguel can’t just cry over spilled milk.

“I told the team it’s beyond our control (now). So, let’s focus and let’s move forward. Let’s be motivated by the incident,” Austria said.

The nine-time PBA champion mentor will bank on June Mar Fajardo, CJ Perez, Don Trollano and Tautuaa to power the team’s rebound charge, using the Game 1 drama as rallying point.

“We showed we can compete with TNT,” Austria added.

TNT coach Chot Reyes expects a hungrier and more motivated Beermen.

Reyes is looking to make adjustments to counter what San Miguel will throw at them to level the series.

RR Pogoy and Kelly Williams returned to action after missing games in the semifinals. Pogoy had 23 points in his first run after missing four games while Williams held his own against Fajardo with nine points, seven rebounds and four assists.

But Reyes will still manage the minutes of the two.

“Again, we’re trying to make do managing minutes of so many players, Kelly and Roger, that we knew that if it’s getting close in the end, that we’re going to be at a huge disadvantage because of the depth of San Miguel,” he said.

“So, we’ll just rely on each other, hang on as much as we can, and find a way to win in the endgame.”

TNT is also leaning on Jordan Heading, Calvin Oftana, JP Erram and Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser to draw closer to completing a triple crown.