Juami Tiongson made sure that there would be no repeat of his late-game blunders in Terrafirma’s tough loss in the previous game a week ago.
This time, the streaky scorer took charge in the extension and delivered the goods while keeping the Dyip steady down the stretch to halt a three-game slide.
Tiongson drilled consecutive treys to trigger a crucial barrage of three-pointers in the closing juncture of Terrafirma’s 111-106 overtime shocker over defending champion TNT in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Season 50 Governors’ Cup on Saturday at the Ynares Center-Antipolo.
The guard felt he let his team down in the Dryip’s near upset against his former team San Miguel Beer when he committed a pair of turnovers that allowed the Beermen to escape last 18 July.
Tiongson actually gave Terrafirma a three-point advantage over San Miguel but back-to-back bad passes turned into points on the other end as the Beermen unleashed an 8-0 closing blast for a 109-104 comeback win.
So, he took it upon himself to make up for his shortcomings.
“Honestly, it’s all credit to my teammates. The trust they gave me, whether I make mistakes or miss my shots. Their encouragement and trust in me, that’s a big thing,” Tiongson said.
“Especially after our last game against San Miguel, my two crucial turnovers. Honestly, I just want to make up for those costly turnovers,” he added.
Tiongson torched the Tropang 5G with 24 points on 9-of-16 field goal shooting including 5-of-7 from the three-point area.
Terrafirma saw its 18-point lead in regulation and was dragged by a depleted TNT side to an extra five minutes of play.
The Dyip fell behind, 98-104, with 2:28 left in the extension.
Tiongson let loose a triple followed by another long bomb from the trifecta. He then assisted on a Joseph Eriobu three-pointer before Maverick Ahanmisi joined the fray with a triple to give the Dyip a 110-106 advantage with 35 seconds left.
Tiongson iced the game with a split from the stripe in the final 16 seconds as Terrafirma rediscovered its winning ways for a 2-3 slate.
“It’s a big thing,” Tiongson said of his team’s much-needed win.
“Just to boost our confidence. Honestly, it’s a big thing that we weren’t down coming into the fourth quarter. We just stayed with it. Our encouragement to each other is always there.”
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