Counted or not?

MANILA, Philippines — Jayson Castro’s jumper to win it for TNT over San Miguel Beer with no time left in Game 1 of the PBA Philippine Cup Finals at the Smart Araneta Coliseum last Sunday had to be the ultimate closer. Should it have counted or not? San Miguel isn’t protesting but asked the PBA for a video explanation of the decision to count it.

PBA deputy commissioner Eric Castro said the decision was based on the backlight of the backboard, not on the shot clock that is subject to human factor. Castro said a frame-by-frame slow-motion video of the play provided by TV5 was reviewed. Obviously, the outcome is irreversible. The replay showed that the ball was released before the backlight came on. But it also showed that the ball was still in Castro’s fingertips when the shot clock went 0:00 and the backlight was unlit. It couldn’t get any closer than that. Surely, the decision was tough to make. Castro said the decision was to go by the backlight.

“The PBA Technical Committee did a frame-by-frame slow motion review of the different video angles provided by TV5,” said Castro. “This is the only official means of determining such situation. It has also been a PBA guideline that ‘when the backboard is equipped with red lighting around its perimeter, the lighting takes precedence over the game clock signal sound.’ We did not base our review on a still picture.”

Regarding the time left from inbound to the release of the ball, Castro explained there was no long count. “Rule No. 5, section X (c) from the PBA Rulebook states ‘if play is resumed by a throw-in from out of bounds, the clock shall be started when the ball is legally touched by any player within the playing area of the court,’” said Castro. “Though a human pressing delay factor may come into question, we find no discrepancy on how the 1.6 game clock ran.”

What a way to start the Finals with a bang. The battle was furious and featured dramatic twists. TNT’s Mikey Williams was hounded by Simon Enciso from the onset and scored only six points at the turn. San Miguel sat on a 12-point lead after two quarters then Williams erupted for 12 and RR Pogoy 10 in the third frame as TNT dropped a 33-15 bomb to turn things around. That 12-minute surge was punctuated by TNT tightening the screws on defense with San Miguel lapsing into eight turnovers compared to the Tropa’s one. In the fourth period, the scramble was at its fiercest and the scoring was bloody. San Miguel shot 20 points and TNT, 16 in the windup as the Tropa held on for the squeaker.

As expected, TNT relied on its weapon of choice, the three pointer, to eke out the win, knocking down 11 to San Miguel’s five. The 18-point difference was crucial to make up for TNT’s 12 misses from the line. San Miguel had more rebounds, 46-43, points in the paint, 40-26, and second chance points, 14-6. Additionally, the Beermen hit at a higher clip from the floor, 45.2 percent to 41.3 percent. TNT pounced on San Miguel’s errors to score more turnover points, 27-11, and had more bench points, 38-27. Game 1 could’ve gone either way and could’ve also gone into overtime. It was a defensive, low-scoring contest and that style favors TNT. Note that before Game 1, San Miguel was No. 1 in offense, averaging 101.3 points and TNT was No. 3 in defense, giving up 88.9 points. Holding San Miguel to less than 90 was a feat.