SAN Juan dealt Tanduay its first defeat even as Nueva Ecija drew first blood in the semifinals of the 2022 Filbasket Summer Championship on Friday at the San Jose Del Monte Sports Complex in Bulacan.
The Knights trounced the top-seeded Rum Masters, 101-75, to move one victory away from advancing to the championship round.
Capitals close in on finals berth
The Capitals also closed in on a finals appearance after defeating All-Star Bacolod Ballers Bingo Plus, 88-77, in their own series.
Game Two of the two playoffs will be on Sunday.
The win by San Juan ended Tanduay’s 12-game winning streak that included a perfect 11-0 elimination round. The loss came four days after the Rum Masters beat Muntinlupa in the Filbasket quarterfinals and the core of the team carrying the Batangas City Embassy Chill squad also won over Imus in its MPBL opener.
Jhonard Clarito carried the fifth-ranked Knights with 19 points, eight rebounds, and six assists, as CJ Isit and Justin Gutang added 19 and 18 points, respectively.
John Rey Villanueva had 16 points but the Rum Masters fell behind by as many as 26 points in the contest.
Michael Mabulac had 13 points as the Capitals took advantage of the absence of Mark Yee for the Bacolod Ballers.
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