TNT kept its dominance of the PBA 3×3 grand finals Sunday night.
The Triple Giga rode on the hot hands of Gryan Mendoza, before Almond Vosotros nailed the game-clincher against top seed Cavitex, 21-18, to retain the First Conference championship at the Ayala Malls Market! Market!
TNT trailed early on 7-12, but Mendoza found his range and waxed hot, putting the team in front, 18-17, heading into the final two minutes of the thrilling match.
From there, Vosotros took care of business and hit the winning basket that secured the franchise’s fifth straight conference title and the P750,000 prize money that went with it.
“Definitely, this is just a testament on how good this team is,” said champion coach Mau Belen at the conclusion of the opening conference of Season 3
Mendoza took away the scoring honor from Vosotros as he finished with 10 points. Vosotros, whose long reign as the tournament’s scoring champion, added seven points, five rebounds, and six assists.
Lervin Flores had three points and seven rebounds, while Samboy De Leon added a basket for the second seeded Triple Giga, who were cheered on the sideline by TNT 5-on-5 champion coach and team manager Jojo Lastimosa.
Cavitex was led by the seven points of Dominick Fajardo, while Jorey Napoles, who was crowned as the meet’s newest scoring king added six. The runner-up finish was worth P250,000 for the Braves of coach Kyles Lao, who were supported by the personal appearance of NLEX alternate governor Ronald Dulatre.
In the battle for third place, Meralco took down Barangay Ginebra, 18-14, to bag the P100,000 prize money.
