[caption id="attachment_82091" align="alignleft" width="189"] TNT Asian import Michael Madanly of Syria breaks free from two San Miguel Beer defenders in their PBA Governors' Cup road game at the Batangas City Coliseum in Batangas City, Philippines, Saturday night. [/caption]By Jay R. Gotera MANILA — The TNT KaTropa Texters turned what was expected to be a down-to-the-wire game into a rout as they blew out the San Miguel Beermen, 105-85, in a PBA Governors' Cup out of town game in Batangas City Saturday night. Jayson Castro played a key role in the emphatic TNT victory, banging in 16 points and a whopping 13 assists. Ranidel De Ocampo was the top scorer for the Texters with 18 points while Asian import Michael Madanly added 15 points, seven of them in the fourth quarter when the Texters broke the game wide open. Troy Rosario chipped in 13 markers while import Mychal Ammons posted 11 points and 11 rebounds. Their eighth victory in nine games firmed up the Texters' grip of the top spot in the standings and assured them of a Top 4 finish with the twice-to-beat advantage in the quarterfinals. The Beermen absorbed their third loss in nine games and slid into a tie for third to fourth place with the Mahindra Enforcers, allowing idle Barangay Ginebra to take solo second. Two-time MVP June Mar Fajardo paced SMB with 20 points and 13 rebounds. The two teams battled fiercely in the first half, with TNT ahead just by two points, 47-45, at the half. Castro then took command of the game in the third quarter, dishing out five assists aside from scoring seven points. With the Texters ahead by 16 points, 80-64, Madanly opened the final quarter with a three-pointer and then Mo Tautuaa dunked the ball to give TNT its biggest lead, 85-64, with over 11 minutes remaining in the game. The Asian import from Aleppo, Syria then scored two more baskets as he accounted for seven of TNT's first nine points in the period. Castro returned and once again took control of the game as the Texters' lead rose to as high as 29 points, 99-70, at the 5:39 mark. Led by import Mike Singletary, the Beermen launched a 13-0 run to come to within 16, 99-83. But De Ocampo ended the TNT drought with a basket as the Texters coasted to victory. Games Sunday: Rain or Shine Elasto Painters vs. NLEX Road Warriors and Meralco Bolts vs. Star Hotshots.
