Caloocan holds on to MPBL lead as Cebu, Rizal win
MANILA, Philippines — Caloocan quelled Pasay's repeated rallies and prevailed, 82-74, on Thursday to retain top spot in the SportsPlus MPBL (Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League) 2026 Season at the Pasay Astrodome.
The Voyagers threatened twice — the last at 75-73 — but the Batang Kankaloo countered through Kymani Ladi in the dying seconds to tally their 11th straight victory in the round-robin elimination phase of the two-division, 28-team tournament.
Ladi tallied 15 points, highlighted by a two-handed slam with 44.7 seconds left, eight rebounds and three assists to push the Batang Kankaloo farther ahead of the Quezon Huskers (8-0) in the overall race for playoff spots.
The 6-foot-8 former Ateneo Blue Eagle star earned Best Player honors over Jielo Razon, who finished with 13 points and two assists; Cris Bitoon with 10 points, four steals and two assists; and Eric Camson with 11 points.
Pasay threatened at 68-66 after Christian Pajarito bunched seven points, and again at 73-71, following a seven-point bundle by Cyril Gonzales, only for Camson and Ladi to come up with crucial baskets.
The Voyagers tumbled to 7-4 as only Fajarito struck back with 32 points, eight rebounds and two assists. Gonzales and homegrown Nico Quinal had nine points each.
Cebu subdues Valenzuela
The Cebu Greats subdued the Valenzuela City Darkhorse, 89-70, and climbed to 8-3 in the second game.
Top Gun Mark Meneses posted 17 points, eight rebounds, three steals and two assists for Cebu, which converted more than half of its field goal attempts (37 of 71) against Valenzuela's 25 of 72.
Meneses got support from Ron Dennison with 17 points and two rebounds; Wowie Escosio with 14 points and eight rebounds; Simon Camacho and Alfrancis Tamsi with nine points each; and Cebuano legend Dondon Hontiveros with eight points.
Valenzuela, which fell to the bottom half with a 5-6 slate, drew 21 points and four rebounds from Angelo Obuyes; and 20 points, seven rebounds and two assists from Jay Collado.
Rizal clobbers Bacolod
Rizal XentroMall clobbered Bacolod, 107-72, in the opener and improved to 6-4.
Ahead by eight at halftime, the Rizal Golden Coolers stormed ahead, 83-55, as Alwyn Alday and Jolo Mendoza poured in 10 points each and outscored the entire Maskarras in the third quarter.
Alday posted 21 points, spiced by fivr triples, and four rebounds and was chosen Best Player over Mendoza, with 17 points, three rebounds and two assists.
With JP Maguliano and Joel Lee Yu taking over the offense, Rizal left Bacolod behind as far as 97-58 and pulled the Maskarras down to 3-9.
Maguliano wound up with 12 points, six rebounds, three steals and two assists, followed by Billy Robles, who had 12 points, eight rebounds and three assists, and Yu, with 10 points and three assists.
The Golden Coolers dominated the boards, 50-30, and decided the outcome with a huge 56-10 edge in points in the paint. They were also more cohesive, with 38 assists against the Maskarras' 15.
Bacolod got 17 points each from homegrown John Kobe Dalisay and Emman Galman, and 10 points from Ian Melencio.
The MPBL returns to the Orion Sports Complex on Friday, featuring games between Iloilo and Batangas at 4 p.m.; Quezon City and San Juan at 6 p.m.; and Basilan and host Bataan at 8 p.m. (Pool story)
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