TNT Tropang Giga Aim to Clinch Finals Spot Against Meralco Bolts

The PBA Governors’ Cup Finals have been largely dominated by Barangay Ginebra and Meralco in the last few years, with the two teams taking turns winning the championship. However, this year, the TNT Tropang Giga hopes to change the narrative and make it to the final as the challenger to the three-peat bid of the Gin Kings. The Tropa is currently leading the best-of-five semifinal showdown against the embattled Bolts with a two-games-to-one advantage, and they will be looking to clinch their spot in the final with a win in Game 4.

Coach Jojo Lastimosa and his team are bracing themselves for a tough battle, expecting the Bolts to put up a strong resistance. “For sure, it’s going to be a hard game, a dogfight, a battle, and whoever comes out the winner, they’re going to be bloodied,” said Lastimosa, who has a chance to go all the way to the title playoff in his first try as a head coach. However, he’s not looking too far ahead and knows they still have a challenging job to do versus coach Norman Black and his Bolts.

TNT Go for Clincher

“I’ve been in situations where I played and was an assistant coach, and the closeout game is always hard,” said Lastimosa. “For some reason, there’s just a different feel when you’re trying to close out because we know the other team is also desperate; at the same time, we don’t want to force the issue. We’ll try to close it out and see how it goes.”

On the other hand, the Bolts are not about to give up easily. Despite their loss in Game 3, Black admits they must do a better job and hopes his team will bounce back in Game 4. In Game 3, the Tropa established their game early on, with their import Rondae Hollis-Jefferson collecting 40 points and 13 rebounds, while KJ McDaniels, who was exceptional in Game 2, scored 30 points and ten boards. Black acknowledged that the Tropa dominated the first half, and his team could not recover in the second half, falling behind by too many points to get back into the game.

The stage is set for an exciting Game 4, with both teams determined to come out on top. It remains to be seen if the Tropa can close out the series and move on to the final or if the Bolts can bounce back and force a Game 5.

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