#PBA2015 PLAYOFF PREVIEW: TALK N TEXT TROPANG TEXTERS vs BARAKO BULL ENERGY – THE FAVORED VS THE FORSAKEN

Without a doubt, TNT is the heavily-favored club in this quarterfinal pairing. They have won 3 of their last 4 games and were the ones who dealt BAR its first loss of the conference in mid-February. The Texters have two BPC candidates in Jayson Castro and RDO and import Ivan Johnson has been on a tear. On the other end, practically nobody is giving BAR any realistic chance of pulling the rug from under the Texters. BAR is on the wrong end of a twice-to-beat and has struggled with consistency, especially from its locals. If Solomon Alabi is the only guy who puts up big numbers in this game, BAR will be in hot water.

Here are some things to watch in this game:

1. IVAN THE TERRIBLE

Since coming in to replace Richard Howell, Johnson has been dominant. He is second among imports in scoring, leads all imports in threes made per game, and also tops all imports in steals per outing. He has been very tough to stop on both ends of the floor, and don’t be surprised if his versatility and ability to stretch the defense befuddles BAR here.

Comm Cup stats: 33.7ppg, 14.3rpg, 3.2spg, 3.3 triples per game, 37.7 3pt%, 48.3 FG%
Last game: 47pts, 10rebs, NINE THREES!!!

2. BLUR AS BPC?

Gilas playmaker Jayson Castro has quietly been putting up a solid case for BPC consideration. Right now, he is running second behind June Mar Fajardo (eliminated already), but since TNT is way up in the standings, Castro is a good pick as a BPC favorite. Right now, he is 3rd in scoring, 3rd in 3pt%, 2nd in 3pts made per game, and 4th in assists. In other words, he is just doing everything for TNT.
Comm Cup stats: 17.1ppg, 4.6rpg, 4.6apg, 2.6 triples per game, 44.6 3pt%

3. MGR AS ROY FAVORITE?

Another Texter who has blossomed this conference is rookie sensation Matt Ganuelas-Rosser.  MGR started the season a little slow, but his production has really ramped up this conference almost to the point of making PBA fans forget early ROY leader Stanley Pringle. With Pringle sitting out because of injury and the Batang Pier eliminated, MGR has a huge chance to leave a lasting impression on those who will vote for ROY. If he can continue putting up big numbers, he may just take the ROY race lead.

Comm Cup stats: 11.8ppg, 3.9rpg, 2.2apg, 1.0bpg, 50.6  FG%

4. RED HOT FROM RAINBOW COUNTRY!

One thing that makes TNT so difficult to beat is that the Texters are so good at spreading the floor and hitting the outside shot. They are 2nd behind ROS in total 3pts made but they are tops in 3pt%. In addition, TNT is also 2nd overall in FG% just behind league leader PUR. There are five guys on this roster that hit at least 1 three per game. That is just crazy. BAR, however, is pretty good at defending the three — they allow just over 6 threes made a game, so it will be interesting to see how things pan out. It is worth noting, though, that in their last game against each other, TNT hit 11 treys against BAR.

TNT players with at least 1 three per game:
Johnson – 3.3 per game
Castro – 2.6 per game
RDO – 2.1 per game
Fonacier – 1.3 per game
Washington – 1.0 per game

TNT average threes = 9.9 per game
In its last game, TNT hit SEVENTEEN threes against ALA.

5. RIDE THE BIG BAD MAN

All throughout this conference, Solomin Alabi has been one of the baddest imports, putting up around 20-20 in most games. In a conference full of inconsistency for BAR, Alabi has been the sole constant. They will certainly need him to continue his big bad production for them to even have a small chance of beating TNT and forcing a rubber match.

Comm Cup stats: 23.7ppg, 19.5rpg, 3.7bpg, 52.2 FG%
Last game: 29pts, 15rebs, 4blks, 58.8 FG%
6. ROCKET LAUNCH!

One of the best locals, though, has been newlywed JC Intal. The rise in his production this season has been very noticeable, and he can actually be likened to versatile forwards like Arwind Santos and RDO. At 6’4, he has great size at the SF spot, but he has the athleticism to match up against TNT in the frontline, too. If Intal can light it up from long range and be aggressive on both ends of the floor, he should give BAR a big boost.

Career stats: 7.0ppg, 3.4rpg, 26.2 3pt%, 0.7 triples per game
Comm Cup stats: 13.4ppg, 4.7rpg, 27.8 3pt%, 1.4 triples per game

7. TERRIFIC TANDEM

Two other key guys for BAR will be Sol Mercado and Chico Lanete, who give the Energy an explosive backcourt tandem. These two will have to come up with huge numbers for BAR to challenge TNT in this game, and if they can get going offensively and, at the same time, slow down the likes of Jayson Castro, Larry Fonacier, Willie Miller, and Kevin Alas, then BAR should be in good shape.

Comm Cup stats:
Lanete – 11.8ppg, 2.1rpg, 1.9apg, 2.4spg
Mercado – 11.6ppg, 3.6rpg, 5.3apg

8. DO IT WITH DEFENSE

BAR has been inconsistent in terms of offense, but they have been one of the better defensive teams in the league. They are in the top half of the league in pts allowed and 2nd best in limiting opponents’ FG%. They also force the fourth most average turnovers per outing and, in their last game, the Energy actually recorded 10 steals, which led to 15 NLEX turnovers. If BAR’s defense is locked in vs TNT, the Energy should put themselves in a good position to win.

Pts allowed – 89.6 (6th)
FG% allowed – 40.1% (2nd)
Opp’s TOs – 16.2 (4th)

9. MARQUEE MATCH-UP: DAVE MARCELO/JAKE PASCUAL VS RDO

Stopping RDO will be one of the top priorities for BAR in this game, and the guys who will be tasked to do that are Dave Marcelo and Jake Pascual. The two former Red Lions will have their hands full against the Gilas PF, but they have the size and tenacity to try and match-up. If they can force RDO outside his comfort zone, that will give BAR a huge lift.

Marcelo stats: 6.1ppg, 4.0rpg, 49.1 FG%
Pascual stats: 5.9ppg, 4.5rpg, 1.0apg, 1.0spg, 49.2 FG%
RDO stats: 14.4ppg, 6.2rpg, 1.7apg, 1.2spg, 2.1 triples per game, 38.3 3pt%, 48.5 FG%

10. PREVIOUS MATCH-UP: STOP THE STREAK!

In the latest contest pitting these two clubs, TNT put a stop to BAR’s 3-game winning streak. The Texters were able to give streaking Barako Bull its first blemish on an erstwhile unbeaten PBA Commissioner’s Cup record, 80-75. Jayson Castro scored 16 points, including two big three-pointers in the fourth quarter, to lead a multitude of double-digit scorers for the balanced Tropang Texters, who climbed into a tie with their victims at 3-1. Matt Ganuelas-Rosser finished with 15, while veteran pick-up Willie Miller had 13 and Ranidel De Ocampo had 11, both off the bench. Larry Fonacier added 10 points. Former TNT Import Richard Howell posted 11 points, 18 rebounds, and 4 assists. The game was tied with about six minutes remaining before Castro and Fonacier knocked down a couple of threes that helped the team stay in front in the endgame. The Tropang Texters hit 11 three-pointers in the contest while the Energy connected on just three. Solomon Alabi had 21 points, 24 rebounds and five blocks for Barako Bull, while Carlo Lastimosa stepped up with 16 markers in the loss.

Leading scorers from that game:

TNT
Castro – 16pts
Rosser – 15pts
Howell – 11pts, 18rebs
*TNT hit 11 triples in this game.

BAR
Alabi – 21pts, 23rebs
Lastimosa – 16pts
Pascual – 12pts

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