PAMPANGA and Taguig arranged a title showdown after winning a pair of Game 3s in the National Basketball League (NBL) Season 2 semifinals last Sunday at the Bren Z. Guiao Convention Center in San Fernando, Pampanga.
The Pampanga Delta beat the Laguna Pistons, 95-80, while the Taguig Generals ousted last season’s champions Parañaque Aces, 87-80, to set up a best-of-three finals in a league that aims to showcase homegrown talents.
Bryan Santos led the way with 18 points, five rebounds, and five assists in front of a packed crowd on their homecourt as the top-seeded Delta reached the finals in only their first season in the league.
Gilbert Ocampo scored 17 points and Mark Tamayo added 15 points, all from three-pointers, in the win by the Alan Trinidad-coached Pampanga over No. 4 Laguna.
Helino Francisco came away with 17 points and 19 rebounds as the Generals, who entered the playoffs as the third-ranked team, advanced to the NBL finals for the first time by dethroning the second-seed Aces.
LJ Mayo and Rickson Gerero also contributed in Taguig’s win with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
Game 1 of the NBL finals will be held next weekend. The schedule will be announced on the league’s social media account, facebook.com/nblphl.