Williams fires 31, TNT rips Terrafirma  

MANILA, Philippines — Rampaging TNT overpowered slumping Terrafirma, 114-86, in a hot-versus-not duel that played out according to the established order in yesterday’s PBA Philippine Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Mikey Williams bombarded the Dyip with his conference-high 31 points spiked by six booming triples, presiding over TNT’s great breakaway in the third that paved the path to its fifth straight triumph and 7-2 overall.

Williams, who also posted seven rebounds and five assists, was joined in the Tropang Giga scoring parade by stalwarts Poy Erram (18 markers with nine boards and two blocks) and RR Pogoy (15) and backup Jayjay Alejandro (11) and Jaydee Tungcab (10).

It wasn’t a 100-percent TNT show, though, as after storming to a Williams-led 31-14 tear in the first quarter, the defending champions lost the second period badly, 34-18, and allowed Terrafirma to close in at 49-48.

That was a major topic of discussion during the break and eventually spurred the Tropang Giga into action when the game restarted.

Williams rifled in 11 as TNT uncorked a 35-19 exchange in the third to restore a huge 84-67 upperhand.

Later, Barangay Ginebra grabbed a share of the lead with idle San Miguel after notching its fifth victory in six games at the expense of Converge, 105-89.

Scottie Thompson delivered 24-6-6 as the Gin Kings made it three in a row.

and gave Richard del Rosario a winning start in his stand-in chores for on-leave mentor Tim Cone.

The FiberXers fell to back-to-back losses and 2-5 overall.

And this time around, the Tropang Giga didn’t let the Dyip mount any serious fightback anymore.

“We were very businesslike at halftime because we knew this was a tough team (Terrafirma). We had no pretension that it would be an easy game. So we talked about making adjustments defensively after giving up 34 points in the second quarter,” said TNT coach Chot Reyes.

TNT won the final canto handily, 30-19, en route to the 28-point romp.

“When the third quarter ended and we were again up by 17, we reminded everyone ‘here we were again,’” Reyes added.