It was Chris McCullough’s turn to deliver a monster performance, keeping the TNT Tropang 5G alive in the PBA Season 50 Commissioner’s Cup finals while also spoiling yet another masterpiece from Justin Brownlee.
McCullough erupted for a career-high 53 points as TNT defeated the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel Kings, 98-90, in Game 6 before 22,731 fans on Sunday, June 14, at the Araneta Coliseum in Cubao.
“I just wanted to come out and be aggressive,” said McCullough, who also tied his career high of 22 rebounds while scoring 16 of his points in the crucial fourth quarter.
TNT and Ginebra will clash one final time in the winner-take-all Game 7 on Wednesday, June 17, at 7:30 p.m. at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.
There, the Tropang 5G will hope for McCullough to replicate his late-game heroics.
Trailing 78-80, McCullough scored five straight points before Kelly Williams extended TNT’s lead to 85-80 with a basket at the 3:35 mark.
Brownlee kept Ginebra within striking distance, converting a two-pointer with 2:47 remaining to cut the deficit to 86-90.
But McCullough answered with a four-pointer to restore an eight-point cushion, an advantage that proved enough to seal the victory.
Aside from McCullough, Jordan Heading stepped up with 19 points and nine assists as TNT missed the services of Calvin Oftana and Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser, who are both game-time decisions for Wednesday as they continue to deal with their respective injuries.
Roger Pogoy also played a crucial role, finishing with 13 points and three assists.
On the other hand, Brownlee followed up his 54-point outburst in Game 5 with 52 points, five rebounds, and three assists.
However, no other Ginebra player scored in double figures.
Their next leading scorer was Troy Rosario, who finished with nine points, while Japeth Aguilar added eight.
RJ Abarrientos also had an off night with six points, while Scottie Thompson managed just three. Excluding Brownlee’s output, Ginebra shot just 14-of-52 (26.9 percent) from the field, with Abarrientos and Thompson combining to go 2-of-18. (ABS-CBN News)