RR Pogoy was struggling. His shot wasn’t falling. Bol Bol was sidelined for the conference. And the TNT Tropang 5G needed a basket.
He gave them one.
Pogoy drilled the go-ahead triple in the dying seconds to lift the Tropang 5G past the Meralco Bolts, 77-75, in Game 3 of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup semifinals—an all-Filipino effort that gave the Tropang 5G a 2-1 series lead and Pogoy his latest weekly citation. The PBA Press Corps named him Player of the Week for the period May 20–24, chosen over the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel duo of Scottie Thompson and RJ Abarrientos.
The clutch basket was all the more remarkable given the night the former FEU Tamaraw was having. He finished with just 9 points on 3-for-12 shooting—a cold, grinding performance that made the winning shot feel even more improbable.
“Sobrang sama ng shooting ko tapos yung pumasok pa yung pangpanalo kaya sobrang sarap sa pakiramdam,” Pogoy said.
Pogoy Delivers Heartstopping Moment
The context made the win mean something beyond the scoreline. TNT lost Bol to an Achilles injury in Game 2, and emergency replacement Malick Diouf couldn’t secure the necessary documents in time to play in Game 3—leaving the Tropang 5G to run out an all-Filipino lineup against a fully loaded Meralco squad. They found a way.
“Sobrang proud ako sa team namin kasi wala kaming import, lumaban pa din kami,” said the Cebuano veteran.
Over the May 20-24 stretch, Pogoy averaged 19.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.7 steals, and 1.3 assists as TNT moved within two wins of advancing to the Finals for the fifth straight conference. Now, with Chris McCullough brought in as the new reinforcement, the Tropang 5G have their import situation resolved and Meralco staring at a must-win Game 4.
Pogoy carried TNT through the hardest stretch. McCullough takes it from here.
