MANILA, Philippines – The titleholder is being pulled into yet another fight by the closeout for TNT or Rain or Shine.

The Tropang Giga are primed to go for the kill after the two teams’ back-to-back grind-out battles ended, and they’re ready for the action on Friday at the Ynares Sports Center in Antipolo.

With one more victory, Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and his teammates will go to the Last Dance and have the opportunity to replicate their 2023 PBA Governors’ Cup title run, which they won against the Barangay Ginebra Kings.

The Tropang Giga, who won 91-89 on Wednesday, will have three chances to advance to the finals. Game Five will take place on Friday at the Ynares Sports Arena in Antipolo.

But after barely making it through a difficult test the last time out, TNT coach Chot Reyes isn’t looking far forward just yet.

Chot Reyes, the head coach of TNT, stressed that the squad is only focused on the upcoming match in their PBA Governors’ Cup semifinal series and is not yet considering the finals. Reyes emphasized that the team’s focus is on making sure they are prepared to confront Rain or Shine (ROS) and not looking past the immediate obstacle as they get ready for Game 5 at 7:30 p.m.

Rondae Hollis-Jefferson, a TNT import, reinforced the message, stressing the value of remaining locked in. The Tropang Giga are aware that even though they are up in the series right now, they cannot afford to relax, particularly while facing a tenacious ROS squad that hasn’t given up.

Even though ROS is down in the series, head coach Yeng Guiao is still confident in his team’s prospects. Although he knows the road ahead will be difficult, he has faith in his youthful team’s capacity to battle back. Despite the situation, Guiao remained optimistic, pointing out that his squad has been competitive the entire series. The games might have gone either way, he said, and even though the Elasto Painters are behind, they are still learning how to win.

Because of their perseverance and tenacity thus far, Guiao has faith in his team. Despite the fact that the series has not gone their way, the coach is optimistic and believes his players are still improving. He is inspired by the Elasto Painters’ perseverance in every game and thinks they still have a chance to salvage the series. As they get ready for the next game in this fiercely contested semifinal series, the team’s upbeat attitude and gaining experience will be essential.

Yeng Guiao, the head coach of Rain or Shine (ROS), stated that his team is not only putting up a strong fight in the PBA Governors’ Cup semifinals, but they are also taking a lot of lessons from the process. Guiao is still hopeful that his team can still make changes to improve their chances of winning the series. The Elasto Painters are clinging to the hope that they can push TNT to its limits, even if they are losing the best-of-seven series.

Guiao is aware that they have very little room for mistakes and that the only thing they can do at this point is to prolong the series and postpone TNT’s run to the championship game. Given that Rondae Hollis-Jefferson (RHJ), a star import from TNT, is playing well and putting in a lot of minutes on the court, he is well aware of the difficulty they confront. Guiao sees a chance, though, if they can make the series last longer than five games. According to him, Hollis-Jefferson has been playing more than 46 minutes every game while exerting a lot of energy.

Guiao believes that the Elasto Painters can take advantage of tiredness, especially for RHJ, by prolonging the series to a Game 6 or perhaps a Game 7. The team is holding onto the prospect of wearing out TNT’s main character in an effort to extend the series.

If the Elasto Painters want to save their season and advance to a pivotal Game 6 or Game 7, they will need to be able to learn, adapt, and maintain a high level of energy.