After a display of parity in the eliminations and multiple playoff storylines, the PBA Season 50 Commissioner's Cup is one win away from having a Finals rematch from the last iteration of this conference.
On Friday, eighth-seeded TNT Tropang 5G bounced back with a gritty 103-95 victory over Meralco Bolts, while Barangay Ginebra won a highly-contested 111-104 battle against Rain or Shine Elasto Painters on Friday evening at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
We check out how TNT's offensive approach became successful and what could Meralco do as a counter, and how RJ Abarrientos' explosion could be steer Ginebra over Rain or Shine
Heading getting his rhythm through ball screen actions
The second game of Chris McCollough in a TNT uniform quickly displayed his pedigree that made him a PBA champion back in 2019 with 42 points and 11 rebounds on 64.8 TS%.
So the difference maker for the Tropang 5G has been the amount of production they are getting from their locals.
As RR Pogoy and Calvin Oftana continue to feast on post mismatches against CJ Cansino, another wrinkle that TNT has tapped into recently is Jordan Heading ball-screen actions to put new Meralco import Patrick Gardner in action.
This ploy has challenged the Bolts' defense, with Gardner's base coverage being in the drop -- opening up pull-up jumpers for a good shooter like Heading.
In the past two games, the former Gilas Pilipinas guard has averaged 18.5 points, three rebounds and 5.5 assists on 67.2 TS% while shooting 45.5% from beyond the arc.
What's important is that he has also helped TNT to finally move the ball, especially when Meralco has decided to blitz him -- with the Tropang 5G putting up 21.5 assists on both assignments.
Will Banchero-Black take the starting backcourt?
For Meralco's veteran rookie Jason Brickman and CJ Cansino, it has been a struggle to find consistent contributions.
The 35-year old point guard has just produced 5.2 points on 30.3% shooting from the field and Cansino's minutes have dropped to just 20.6 minutes in this series.
This has made consultant Nenad Vučinić needing to entrust his second-unit backcourt tandem of Chris Banchero and Aaron Black to take more scoring responsibility, evidenced by their Game 5 performance.
For Banchero, he was tied for most points among locals with 12 points, and the second-generation PBA player in Black with 11 markers.
And what has made it successful has been their abilities to score against TNT's zone defense.
Both guards' drives have been crucial in attacking the seams, forcing the defense to collapse and creating easier opportunities for Meralco's shooters and interior finishers.
Rather than settling for perimeter shots against the zone, Banchero and Black consistently looked to penetrate the gaps, putting pressure on the middle of the floor where TNT's defensive coverage was most vulnerable, something they might continue to do come their win or go home situation.
Abarrientos' off-ball movement
One of the biggest adjustments RJ Abarrientos made in Game 5 was how he generated his touches.
Rather than spending most of the night initiating from the top of the floor against a set defense, Ginebra worked to free him through off-ball actions and constant movement.
Abarrientos frequently relocated along the perimeter, sprinted into open spaces after giving up the ball, and came off handoffs or secondary actions whenever Rain or Shine committed extra attention toward Justin Brownlee. Those sequences allowed him to catch the ball on the move and attack before his defender could get fully set.
The change paid huge dividends as Abarrientos erupted for 31 points, eight assists, four rebounds and four three-pointers. More importantly, many of his baskets came from attacking late closeouts rather than creating everything off the dribble.
With Rain or Shine focused on containing Brownlee, Abarrientos repeatedly found openings in the defense, turning simple catches into drives, pull-up jumpers, and kick-outs. It was arguably his most complete offensive performance of the series and could be pivotal in their closeout chance by Game 6.
Nocum should simplify things
For Nocum, Game 5 was another example of how simplifying his offensive approach has worked in his favor.
Rather than trying to orchestrate the offense or make difficult reads against Ginebra's defense, the Rain or Shine guard focused primarily on scoring. Whenever he caught the ball with an advantage, his first instinct was to attack downhill, using his speed to get into the paint before the defense could get set.
And when those driving lanes weren't available, Nocum did a good job of taking the jumpers that the defense gave him instead of forcing the issue.
That balance between attacking the rim and confidently taking open shots allowed him to finish with 25 points and remain Rain or Shine's most consistent offensive threat.
Even though Ginebra tightened up defensively in the fourth quarter and made his touches more difficult, Nocum's simplified reads and scorer's mentality kept the Elasto Painters within striking distance for much of the contest