STREAKING Binan Tatak Gel led throughout and swamped Marikina 97-59, on Monday to secure a top four spot in the South Division of the MPBL (Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League) Sixth Season at the Paco Arena in Manila.
Binan cruised to its eighth straight win and climbed to 19-8, sharing third and fourth places with Batangas and moving beyond reach of Paranaque (16-10) in the round-robin eliminations of the 29-team tournament.
Powered by Pierce Tyron Chan, Pamboy Raymundo, Joseph Penaredondo, and Jaymar Gimpayan, Tatak Gel led by as far as 71-31 late in the third quarter before easing up on the also-ran Shoemasters, who slumped to 7-18 following their fourth straight defeat.
Raymundo posted 13 points, including three triples, and five assists, as Chan tallied 14 points, spiked by four triples, and five rebounds. Penaredondo contributed 11 points, while Gimpayan wound up with 10 points, nine rebounds, and three assists.
Hardly missing Marc Pingris, Binan ruled the boards, 51-40, and buried Marikina with 48 points inside the paint to gain homecourt advantage in the three-game playoffs, like division leaders Quezon Province and Zamboanga, both with 20-6 slates.
Led by Chan and Raymundo, Tatak Gel also drilled in 12 triples, while the Shoemasters could only convert five.
Caloocan clinches playoff spot, too
Caloocan then trounced Bulacan, 91-71, to climb to 16-9 and secure a spot in the North Division playoffs.
Led by Joshua Flores with 14 points and six rebounds and Reil Cervantes with 10 points and three rebounds, the Batang Kankaloo improved to 16-9, out of reach of Abra (15-10), Rizal Xentromall (14-12), Quezon City (13-13), and Valenzuela (13-13), which are all disputing the last two playoff seats in the division being lorded over by overall leaders San Juan (25-1), Pampanga (26-2), and Nueva Ecija (22-3). Manila (18-8) and Pasay (17-10) have also qualified for the three-game quarterfinals.
Meanwhile, Iloilo United stunned Bataan, 104-100, in overtime in a battle of also-ran teams.
Sustaining their strong performance in regulation, Mark Nonoy and Clint Doliguez combined for 12 points in the extra period, surpassing the Risers' 10 points and pushing the Royals to a 9-17 card.
Nonoy wound up with 32 points, five rebounds, four assists, and two steals, while Doliguez finished with 21 points and 11 boards.
Bataan dropped to 9-18 despite the 29-point, 11-rebound, 3-assists effort of Yves Sazon.
The MPBL returns to the San Andres Sports Complex on Wednesday with games pitting Paranaque against Imus at 4 p.m., Nueva Ecija against Rizal at 6 p.m., and Batangas against Sarangani at 8 p.m.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
