QUEZON Province survived Binan's final assault to take Game One, 57-55, of the MPBL 2025 Season South Division Finals on Monday night at the Quezon Convention Center in Lucena City.
Binan could have forced overtime, but Marc Pingris overshot an open attempt inside with 1.1 seconds, allowing the Quezon Huskers to bolster their drive to retain the South Division crown.
Quezon escapes
Ahead, 54-46, the Huskers got outscored in the last four minutes, 9 to 3 on a triple by Gab Banal.
The harrowing last-second miss spoiled a valiant effort by Pingris, who made Binan's last four points to keep the game a toss-up until the final seconds.
Judel Fuentes led Quezon with 13 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists, followed by Ximoe Sandagon with 11 points and 3 rebounds and homegrown Emman Tagle with 9 points, all from triples in the second quarter, and LJ Gonzales with 6 points, 8 rebounds and 5 assists.
Binan drew 13 points and 9 rebounds from Warren Bonifacio, 9 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals from Pingris, and 7 points, 6 rebounds and 2 assists from Kenny Roger Rocacurva.
Game 2 will be held at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday at the Lucena Convention Center.
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