MARK Nonoy came up clutch as also-ran Iloilo United shut the playoff door on home team Valenzuela, 72-69, on Tuesday in the MPBL (Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League) Sixth Season at the WES Arena.
The homegrown speedster pumped in 10 points in the last four and a half minutes, outscoring all the Classic, and pushing the Royals to their 10th win against 17 losses in the round-robin eliminations of the two-division, 29-team tournament.
Valenzuela fell to 13-14 and tumbled out of the chase for the eighth and last playoff slot in the North Division, leaving Rizal Xentromall and Quezon City TODA Akyson, both 14-13, as contenders.
Nonoy, former star of University of Santo Tomas before moving over to La Salle, posted 14 points in an 18-minute, 26-second stint, as Clint Doliguez chipped in 15 points, four rebounds, and three assists and Ry De La Rosa chimed in 12 points and three rebounds.
After yielding control to Iloilo, 64-68, following an eight-point cluster by Nonoy, the Classic regained the lead on a triple by Dennis Santos and a layup by Darell Manliguez with under two minutes left.
Leo de Vera, however, followed up a Nonoy miss and Nonoy made two free throws later for the final count, as Valenzuela's Gianne Paulo Rivera and Bryan Lacap muffed on their last shots.
Abra clinched playoff berth
The top seven North qualifiers are San Juan (26-1), Pampanga (26-2), Nueva Ecija (24-3), Manila (18-8), Caloocan (17-9), Pasay (17-10) and Abra (17-10), following a 129-68 dumping of also-ran Bicolandia in the opener.
READ: Roi Sumang leads Abra to a blowout win over Bicolandia
In a clash between also-ran teams, Pangasinan trounced Sarangani, 88-70, and climbed to 12-15.
The MPBL resumes on Friday at the Caloocan Sports Complex with games pitting Bacolod against Imus at 4 p.m., Pasay against Nueva Ecija at 6 p.m., and San Juan against Caloocan at 8 p.m.
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