MPBL: Gensan shocks Caloocan as Zamboanga, Bataan trounce foes

MANILA, Philippines, August 12 ------ The GenSan Warriors kept their poise after yielding control and bested the Caloocan Batang Kankaloo, 85-82 in the SportsPlus MPBL (Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League) 2026 Season at the Caloocan Sports Complex.

Staring at a 75-81 deficit after leading 73-68 early in the fourth quarter, the Warriors tightened their defense and bundled six points to knot the count at 81, with 45.1 seconds left. GenSan's Joshua Fontanilla, however, converted two charities, and Larry Rodriguez scored on a fast-break play for the final count, as Caloocan's Jeff Manday missed a hurried 3-pointer with 6.7 seconds to go.

The Warriors raised their record to 15-4 in the round-robin elimination phase of the two-division, 26-team tournament and occupied the fourth spot in the South Division, behind Batangas City (15-3), Quezon Province (13-3) and Binan (17-4). Fontanilla, former star of St. Clare College of Caloocan, notched 20 points, five assists and three rebounds to earn Best Player honors over Adi Santos, who had 11 points, 10 rebounds and four assists. "We just did our best as we have only one goal (winning)," said Fontanilla.

Rodriguez wound up with 11 points, three rebounds and two assists, followed by Hesed Gabo with eight points, five rebounds, three assists and three steals; and Kris Porter with nine points. Caloocan, which dropped to 17-3 and third place in the North Division, drew 19 points, including a perfect 12-of-12 free throws, nine assists, two rebounds and two steals from Kean Baclaan; 15 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals from Manday; 14 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and three steals from Kymani Ladi; and 11 points from Jeramer Cabanag.

Zamboanga nips Valenzuela

The Zamboanga SiKat leaned on Brandon Wilson to nip Valenzuela City, 76-73, and rev up its playoff drive with an 8-12 slate. Wilson tallied 25 points, nine rebounds and two assists, followed by Paeng Are with 12 points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals; and Jayson Puray, with 10 points and three rebounds. Exploiting its rebounding edge, 59-45, Zamboanga pulled away at 44-27 and foiled Valenzuela's repeated rallies. The Valenzuela Darkhorse tumbled to 9-13 despite Shaq Alanes' 32 points, five rebounds and two assists; Jay Collado's 10 points and 11 rebounds; and Nico Mamaradlo's 14 points plus three rebounds.

Bataan trounces Sarangani

The Bataan Risers trounced the Sarangani 10ACT Marlins, 90-73, in the opener to remain in playoff contention. With homegrown Yves Sazon and Lerwin Flores providing firepower, Bataan led as far as 79-53 early in the fourth quarter before cruising to its ninth win against 12 losses.

Sazon posted 23 points, two rebounds and two assists to capture the Best Player honors over Flores, who posted 14 points, six rebounds and five assists. Other Risers who delivered were Jamil Gabawan with eight points, 10 rebounds and four assists; and Joey Barcuma with nine points plus two rebounds.

Leland Estacio drilled in three triples; Carl Bryan Lacap added five points; and Paul Sanga added one triple to push Sarangani closer, 70-86. Sarangani, which skidded to 3-22, got 18 points and four rebounds from Lacap, 14 points, five rebounds and three assists from Estacio; and 12 points plus three rebounds from Ralph Tansingco. The tournament returns to the Batangas City Coliseum on Wednesday, featuring games between Bulacan and Abra at 3 p.m.; Ilagan Isabela and Cebu at 5 p.m.; and Batangas City and Imus at 7 p.m.

Source: philstar.com