HERO ONCE MORE
After NLEX battled back from 29 points down and tied the game at 96 with 8.8 seconds remaining, Talk ‘N Text went to the guy with the icy nerves.
Jayson Castro to the rescue.
Calmly, he dribbled past the half-court line, went slightly to the left and then popped up for a 20-footer over the outstretched arms of Jonas Villanueva and Rudy Lingganay.
Everyone watched in silence as the ball followed its projectile, then, just as the buzzer sounded, the rock rattled into the rim, sending the Big Dome crowd into a frenzy.
Two or three, it didn’t matter, as Castro drilled the game-winner to lift the Tropang Texters to a 98-96 win over the Road Warriors for their fifth win in six games.
“Swerte lang,” he said, still riled from the high given by draining the game-winner. “Wide open naman yun at nakita din na naka-sag si Jonas (Villanueva) kaya tinira ko.”
However, Castro felt that they shouldn’t have been in that position to start with.
“Nakuha na nila yung momentum nila going sa fourth quarter. Si (Al) Thornton, nakuha nya yung rhythm nya going to the basket at laging natatawagan ng foul,” Castro said.
He blamed their poor shot selection for the Road Warriors’ comeback.
“Di kami maka-shoot. Pero yung game na yun, yung mga shot selection namin ang tiningnan namin. We took bad shots, hindi high-percentage shots. Dapat pumunta kami kay Ivan (Johnson) more on the post.”
But a win is a win, and Castro would go home with a happy smile after scoring 16 points on 4-of-7 shooting from beyond the arc. He also wound up with four rebounds and three assists in the morale boosting victory. (RL)
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