One more game. Will there be a repeat champ or a new one?
With the Tropang 5G bruised, undermanned, and staring at elimination, import Chris McCullough refused to let his team’s title defense end quietly by delivering a massive 53-point, 22-rebound performance in Game 6 to lift TNT past Barangay Ginebra, 98-90, on Sunday.
This forces an even more explosive winner-take-all Game 7 in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup Finals before 22,731 fans at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The victory kept McCullough’s bid for a second PBA championship alive and preserved TNT’s hopes of repeating as Commissioner’s Cup champion.
It was a duel worthy of a finals classic. McCullough gamely engaged Ginebra’s favorite import Justin Brownlee who followed up his career-best 54-point performance in Game 5 with another explosive 52-point outing.
But this time, McCullough had the closing answer.
TNT played without Calvin Oftana, who was sidelined by a calf strain, and Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser, who was out with an ankle sprain. The Tropang 5G also lost Jayson Castro late in the game after he limped off following a hard fall.
Still, TNT held on behind McCullough, who carried the team through its most dangerous stretch of the series.
Ginebra erased a 10-point deficit and seized an 80-78 lead behind a 13-3 run to start the fourth quarter, putting TNT’s season on the brink. McCullough responded with two clutch triples and a booming four-point shot in a decisive scoring burst that pushed the Tropang 5G ahead, 94-86, with 1:52 left.
He struck again moments later to make it 96-88 with 1:29 remaining, effectively shutting the door on the Gin Kings’ first chance to close out the series.
McCullough finished with five three-pointers and one four-point basket, providing TNT the firepower and composure it badly needed in a game where every possession carried the weight of survival.
Jordan Heading added 19 points while RR Pogoy chipped in 13 for TNT, which weathered Ginebra’s late push despite its depleted lineup.
McCullough, who came in as replacement import for the injured Bol Bol, rose to the moment just as Brownlee and the Gin Kings appeared ready to finish the job.
“I guess C-Mac got tired of Justin eating his lunch. Another 50-piece by Justin but C-Mac was able to stay in step with him and I think that’s basically the key,” TNT tactician Chot Reyes said.
Reyes said the team entered the game with a clear mindset as it tried to extend the series.
“In our board, we put there ‘96 minutes’ encircled in a heart. We said let’s play the best 96 minutes of our lives — Game 6 and Game 7. And now, we’ve done the first half of that,” he said.
Brownlee carried Ginebra almost single-handedly as no other Gin King reached double figures. Troy Rosario finished with nine points, RJ Abarrientos had six, and Scottie Thompson was held to three.
The deciding Game 7 that will crown the champion of the 2026 Commissioner’s Cup will be played on Wednesday, 7:30 pm, at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.