MANILA, Philippines – Not even a bad back could prevent Roger Pogoy from keying TNT to a semifinals win in the PBA Governors’ Cup.

A gametime decision due to a back injury he sustained 3 weeks ago, Pogoy dealt with the pain and chipped in 18 points in a 103-94 win over Meralco in Game 1 of their best-of-five affair on Sunday, December 16. 

“Truth be told, I’m still not 100 percent,” the third-year guard from Cebu told reporters in a mix of Filipino and English. 

“It still hurts. If I’m going to rate the pain from 1 to 10, it would be a 5 or a 4, but I’m just enduring it,” he added.

“A couple of days ago, it hurt so I rested it and I didn’t participate in practice. I just played through it.” 

The same injury hindered him from suiting up for Gilas Pilipinas in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games despite being named into the initial 12-man lineup. 

Pogoy instead used the break to recuperate, making him healthy enough to see action in the tone-setting series-opener. 

“This is the most important in every series – the Game 1. We said that we’ll get this game so we’re very aggressive from the start.” 

He was big in their third-quarter pullaway, where he scored 8 of their 30 points – all in a 26-13 run that swung a 51-48 KaTropa lead to a commanding 77-61 advantage heading into the final quarter. 

Pogoy also helped douse cold water on the Bolts’ fiery fourth-quarter comeback, sinking a fastbreak layup that pushed their lead to 101-89 with a minute left. 

It was all just adrenaline running through his vains. 

“When you’re on the court, you don’t feel anything at all,” said Pogoy, who knocked down 4 three-pointers and had 2 steals. 

Pogoy, though, has his fingers crossed that his injury will not get any worse as TNT shoots for a 2-0 lead when it meets Meralco in Game 2 on Tuesday, December 17, at the Araneta Coliseum. – Rappler.com