Jayson Castro named PBA Player of the Week

MANILA, Philippines – Jayson Castro still belongs to the PBA’s elite. 

And he proved just that after steering TNT to two straight victories in the 2019 PBA Philippine Cup that made him the rightful winner of Cignal-PBA Press Corps Player of the Week. 

The “Blur” averaged 16.5 points, 6.5 assists, 4 rebounds, and 2.5 steals for the period January 21 to 27 to lead the resurgent KaTropa to wins over sister team NLEX and reigning 4-time all-Filipino champion San Miguel. 

TNT actually had a bad start in the conference, dropping both of its first two games, before Castro flipped the switch. 

Having a rough night against the Road Warriors after going 1-of-9 from the floor and turning the ball over 5 times, the 32-year-old made up for his errors with heroics at crunchtime. 

The two-time Best Point Guard in Asia assisted Roger Pogoy for a clutch 3-pointer before sinking two pressure-packed free throws to seal TNT’s first triumph of the season. 

Castro finished with 9 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, and a steal against NLEX. 

Four days later, he returned with a vengeance, registering all-around numbers of 24 points, 11 assists, 5 rebounds, and 4 steals as the surging KaTropa knocked down the Beermen, 104-93, in a king-sized upset.

The 6-time PBA champion took over in the final quarter, dropping 8 points and 3 key assists that turned a shaky 6-point lead into a 104-89 bubble late in the game.

Aside from pulling to an even 2-2 record in the standings, Castro’s leadership enabled TNT to end a long, 9-game losing streak to San Miguel dating back to Game 5 of the 2017 PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals.

Castro beat teammate Troy Rosario and Ryan Reyes, Rain or Shine’s Gabe Norwood and Mark Borboran, along with Phoenix forward Calvin Abueva, Jason Perkins, and Matthew Wright for the weekly citation. – Rappler.com