“The loss is on us”: CJ Perez on San Miguel’s Game 4 loss to TNT

Three nights after a collapse that lingered heavily over their title hopes, TNT Tropang 5G stormed back into the PBA Finals with urgency, purpose, and unmistakable force—making sure San Miguel Beer felt the response from the opening seconds of Game 4.

From the opening tip Wednesday night at the SM Mall of Asia Arena, TNT played like a team determined to erase the memory of its Game 3 letdown. The Tropang 5G came out firing on both ends, ripping off a blistering 13-0 run that immediately seized control and stunned the Beermen. By the end of the first quarter, TNT had already built a commanding 35-18 advantage, leaving San Miguel scrambling to regroup.

Any hopes of a Beermen response quickly dissolved in the second quarter. TNT continued to push the tempo, space the floor, and capitalize on every defensive breakdown, piling on baskets in transition and the half court. The lead swelled to a staggering 65-40 at halftime, effectively draining the intensity from what was expected to be a pivotal swing game in the Finals.

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San Miguel searched for answers after the break, but none came. TNT’s defensive pressure remained relentless, while its offense continued to hum with efficiency and confidence. At one point, the Tropang 5G’s lead ballooned to as many as 35 points, turning the contest into a rout and shifting the focus from survival to damage control.

By the final buzzer, TNT had secured a dominant 110-87 victory—one that not only restored momentum but also reset the race-to-four Finals at 2-2. What once looked like a potential turning point for San Miguel instead became a full-blown momentum swing, effectively transforming the championship series into a best-of-three showdown.

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CJ Perez rues San Miguel’s lackadaisical outing during Game 4 of the #PBA50 Finals#ReadMore 👉 https://t.co/Xe74ZXTh5X

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After the loss, San Miguel star guard CJ Perez did not mince words in assessing his team’s performance, pointing to their inability to match TNT’s intensity and execution on both ends of the floor.

“The loss is on us. It was a really bad start for us. There was no effort in defense and offense and they had a really good start. That was the problem. In defense, offense, nothing went right,” Perez said in the postmatch press conference.

Perez himself struggled to find rhythm in Game 4, finishing with just 11 points while converting only four of his 15 shot attempts. The usually explosive guard was unable to spark a Beermen comeback as TNT consistently disrupted San Miguel’s offensive flow.

Despite the lopsided result, Perez noted that TNT did not drastically alter its approach from previous games, instead relying on familiar strengths.

“They didn’t do anything new. Their physicality and energy were still there, that was it. They didn’t change much,” he added.

With the series now tied, Perez acknowledged the urgency facing San Miguel as the Finals shift to Antipolo for Game 5, scheduled for Friday, January 30, at the Ynares Center. The 32-year-old emphasized the importance of responding better to TNT’s physical style and in-game adjustments as the championship draws closer.

“We will move on to the next game. Things will be more intense as we get nearer to the title. It’s up to us how we will respond to every adjustment and physicality of TNT,” Perez concluded.

As the Finals enter their decisive stretch, momentum has clearly swung back to TNT—but with both teams now standing on equal footing, the margin for error has all but disappeared heading into a crucial Game 5.

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