With Rondae Hollis-Jefferson leading the charge, reigning champ TNT came out victorious in its first game against NorthPort in the PBA Season 49 Governors' Cup.
Rondae Hollis-Jefferson's latest tour of duty for TNT is off to a fiery start.
Hollis-Jefferson marked his PBA return with a solid game in both ends of the floor, spearheading the Tropang Giga to a narrow 99-95 decision against the Taylor Johns-led Northport in PBA Season 49 Governors' Cup action at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Tuesday, Aug. 20.
Hollis-Jefferson led the way with 32 points, 10 rebounds and five assists that went with four blocks and four steals for TNT, which bucked the absence of RR Pogoy, Kelly Williams and Henry Galinato due to injuries.
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He also became the first player to be fouled while attempting a four-point shot, drawing contact from Cade Flores at the 10:03 seconds mark of the second quarter.
The reigning Best Import sank three freebies out of four.
As impressive as those numbers were, his counterpart in Taylor Johns exploded for a near triple-double of 36 points, 16 rebounds and nine dimes for the Batang Pier but lacked help from his local teammates except for Arvin Tolentino.
After Hollis-Jefferson threw down another slam, Tolentino hit a four-pointer from the right wing to cut the Tropang Giga's lead to four points, 95-99, with 24.6 seconds left.
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TNT then committed a crucial backcourt violation, leaving the door open for NorthPort to keep within striking distance or even tie the game on a four-point shot.
But the Batang Pier had their own lapse, committing a shot clock violation to open their campaign with a loss.
Earlier Rey Nambatac, who had 11 points, four rebounds and four assists in his Tropang Giga debut, connected a pair of free throws to help TNT build a double-digit lead for the first time, 97-87, with under two minutes left.
Oftana chipped in 15 markers and became the first player to hit multiple four-pointers in a game. He nailed his first just nearly three minutes into the match then sank another one halfway in the second quarter. Glenn Khobuntin had 12 points.
Meanwhile, Tolentino was the lone bright local for NorthPort, dropping 23 points and eight rebounds just one day removed from being named as one of the members of Season 48’s All-Mythical First Team.
Jio Jalalon came off the bench and had six points and three assists in 12 minutes in his first game wearing the Batang Pier jersey.
Evan Nelle coughed up three points and hauled down a couple of rebounds and the same number of assists in almost 14 minutes of play.
TNT sets its sights on a second-straight win against recent Philippine Cup champion Meralco on Thursday, Aug. 22, at 7:30 p.m. at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Northport, on the other hand, will next battle Terrafirma in the curtain raiser on Friday, Aug. 23, at 5:00 p.m. in the same venue.