TNT punched the first ticket to the 2020 PBA Philippine Cup Finals by rolling to a 91-81 win over Phoenix Super LPG in a do-or-die Game 5 slugfest Friday at the AUF Sports Arena and Cultural Center.
Bobby Ray Parks shone once more and came alive in the second half, where he scored 22 of his 26 points to lead the TNT franchise to its first Philippine Cup finals appearance in seven years. He also added 10 rebounds and six assists.
Simon Enciso added 12 points, while Jayson Castro, Roger Pogoy and Jay Washington all threw in 11 each for the Tropang Giga.
Game 1 of the All-Filipino finals is on Sunday, Nov. 29. TNT will face the winner of the Ginebra-Meralco semifinals matchup that has also gone the distance.
TNT rode the duo of Parks and Castro in the third frame, as they combined to score 15 of the team's 22 points during that span. That was huge production for a Tropang Giga squad that turned a slim three-point lead early in the quarter to a 62-53 cushion entering the payoff period.
The Tropang Giga proceeded to break the game wide open in the fourth, where an 8-3 start behind Parks gave them a 14-point lead, 70-56, in the first three minutes of the final quarter.
TNT pushed that lead to as many as 17 later on and went on to maintain a double-digit spread for most of the quarter even as the Fuel Masters tried to mount a couple of comeback attempts late.
TNT last appeared in the championship stage of this conference in the 2012-13 season, when the franchise swept Rain or Shine to complete a Philippine Cup three-peat.
The Fuel Masters, on the other hand, will exit the bubble with their heads held high after a tremendous showing that saw them nearly make the finals for the first time in franchise history.
Calvin Abueva led Phoenix Super LPG with 23 points, 13 rebounds and six assists, while Matthew Wright struggled on offense and finished with 13 points on 5-for-19 shooting. Jason Perkins had a quiet night as well, though he still finished with a 11-point, 11-rebound double-double.
