BOL OF LIGHTNING: Bol erupts for 50, powers TNT past Titan Ultra

Games today:

(Ynares Center-Antipolo)

5:15 p.m. --- NLEX vs San Miguel

7:30 p.m. --- Magnolia vs Converge

Celebrated TNT import Bol Bol torched Titan Ultra with 50 points and helped his team pick up a third straight win for a 97-92 result in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup on Saturday at the Ynares Center-Montalban.

Bol willed the defending champion back from an eight-point deficit in the third quarter as the Tropang 5G improved to a 5-2 win-loss record despite missing the services of Jordan Heading and losing Calvin Oftana to an ejection in the opening period.

The 7-foot-3 reinforcement shot 21-of-34 from the field and grabbed 17 rebounds while adding six blocks, four assists and a steal for TNT, which committed 17 of its 18 turnovers in the first three quarters.

“We gave ourselves a chance to defend because even if we we’re missing shots, we’re not turning the ball over and when we forced Titan in a halfcourt set then we have better chances of defending them. I think that’s the story of the last quarter,” Tropang 5G head coach Chot Reyes said.

“In the first three quarters we kept throwing the ball away leading to Titan, I think they’re the No. 1 in the league in fastbreak points, so when you turn the ball over that really feeds into their game. So, in the fourth quarter we took better care of the ball, and we prevented them from getting out there and run,” he added.

Rey Nambatac was the only other TNT player in double figures with 12 points while Jayson Castro and Kevin Ferrer had seven and six points, respectively.

The Tropang 5G played without injured Heading before losing Oftana to a flagrant foul penalty 2 he committed with 4:53 in the first quarter.

Oftana inadvertently hit Mark Omega in the face with his fist as he lost the ball while going up for a driving layup. Omega did not come back to the game as a concussion precaution.

The Giant Risers went up, 68-60, with 1:43 left in the third quarter on a Michael Gilmore slamdunk. TNT answered with a 10-0 run punctuated by a Bol basket for a 70-68 lead to start the final canto.

Titan Ultra regained the lead, 78-73, before Bol scored 10 in the Tropang 5G’s decisive 12-0 run for an 85-78 advantage in the last 4:36. The Giant Risers would threaten one last time as Joshua Munzon nailed a trey to cut their deficit to 95-92 with 44 seconds left only for Castro to ice it on the foul line.

Titan Ultra suffered back-to-back losses for a 2-5 mark despite the 33 points and 15 boards of Gilmore. Munzon had 21 points.

Meanwhile, San Miguel Beer welcomes the return of scoring machine import Bennie Boatwright in hopes of turning its fortunes around.

The Beermen face surging second-running NLEX at 5:15 p.m., parading the same reinforcement that carried them to the throne in the 2024 edition of the tournament.

San Miguel seeks to halt a two-game slide and improve its 3-4 slate with Boatwright, who replaced Justin Patton, back in the fold.

“A very important game for us because we are in a must-win situation in all of our remaining games for us to get to the quarterfinals,” said Beermen coach Leo Austria.

“The target is to get into the top eight. Everything is possible, but right now all our games are must-wins.”

The Road Warriors hold a 6-1 card behind unbeaten quarterfinals-bound Rain or Shine (7-0).

NLEX is on a four–game roll capped by a thrilling 104-101 overtime win over Meralco via buzzer-beating three-pointer by rookie Ljay Gonzales on Friday.

In the other match, Magnolia and Converge slug it out to keep their playoffs hopes alive in the 7:30 p.m. encounter.

The Hotshots have a 3-4 card while the FiberXers carry a 2-5 mark.