TNT Tropang Giga stay alive after Game 5 win over San Miguel in PBA Finals

The TNT Tropang Giga kept their hopes of winning the elusive Grand Slam of Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) titles alive by bouncing back to beat the San Miguel Beermen in Game 5 of the Philippine Cup Finals, 86–78, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Wednesday, July 23.

TNT narrowed their deficit in the best-of-seven finals series to 2–3 and had Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser to thank for the victory after he shone on both ends of the court, finishing with 18 points, five rebounds, four assists (likely intended instead of repeating “rebounds”), and three blocks, giving his team hope after losing their last three games.

Ganuelas-Rosser scored 14 of his 18 points in the first quarter and received strong support from Kelly Williams, who recorded 14 points and seven rebounds, while Calvin Oftana contributed 13 points, seven rebounds, five assists, and two blocks. Jordan Heading added 13 points, six rebounds, and five assists, with Roger Pogoy chipping in 11 points. Almond Vosotros made an important contribution off the bench with 11 points, as six TNT players reached double figures in total.

NOT DONE YET!

JUST IN. TNT stays alive in the PBA Philippine Cup finals and keeps its Grand Slam bid running after an 86-78 win over San Miguel in Game 5.

Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser shows the way for the Tropang 5G with 18 points, 5 rebounds, 5 blocks, and 3 steals. pic.twitter.com/MMwSNKWQEV

— Rappler Sports (@RapplerSports) July 23, 2025

“I saw a lot of fight, just an unwillingness to give up. Our discussion, our pregame talk was all about—this has been a very, very long season, and now we are down to our final week. I said, ‘Let’s make this the best week. We will just fight as hard as we can, and we’ll see what happens,’” TNT head coach Chot Reyes said in the post-match press conference.

“I could see in yesterday’s practice and today, in the body language and in the eyes of our players, they were just not willing to give up. We have said that all year—as long as we show up, we don’t give up—we give ourselves a chance,” he added.

Not even a fourth-quarter fightback by San Miguel and TNT’s recurring injury issues could stop them from winning what was a must-win game for the Tropang Giga. This also means that Game 6 will be a record-tying 75th game of the season for TNT, equaling Alaska Milk’s mark set in 1995.

Reyes will hope his team can continue to fight and level the series when the two teams face off in Game 6 on Friday, July 25, at the PhilSports Arena.

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