MALOLOS, BULACAN — Muntinlupa and Bulacan capped their elimination round campaign with similar hard-fought wins late Saturday night to complete the cast in the MPBL-Anta Rajah Cup at the Bulacan Capitol Gymnasium.

The Angelis Resort-backed Muntinlupa Cagers eliminated the Imus Bandera-GLC Truck and Equipment following an 81-69 win. The victory likewise put Muntinlupa in the no. 3 spot at the end of the elimination round where it will face the Navotas Clutch-Big J Sports.

Bulacan, on the other hand, assumed the no. 2 spot after surviving the Bataan Defenders-BaiShipping, 81-74, in the other game.

The Ligo Sardines-backed Bulacan Kuyas extended their winning streak to five heading to the playoffs, a momentum head coach Chris Baluyot wants to carry over in the quarterfinal round.

“The boys are so determined to go to the playoffs with a win and take the no. 2 spot,” said Mr. Baluyot. “We just want to keep our winning culture and we want to bring it to the playoffs.”

The Kuyas will face the Parañaque Patriots-Gamboa Coffee in the best-of-three quarterfinal round where they carry a home court advantage.

LAST SLOT
Despite losing their last elimination round game, the Defenders will still take the last seat in the playoffs where they will face the Batangas City Athletics-Tanduay starting on Tuesday at the Batangas City Coliseum.

The Defenders ended up in a tie with the Bandera at 2-7, but Bataan will advance by virtue of the win over the other rule.

James Martinez and Stephen Siruma finished with 15 points apiece to lead the Kuyas while JR Taganas went a game away from finishing another double-double performance, tallying 14 points and nine boards.

Muntinlupa was led by Allan Mangahas, who came away with 25 markers, the most he produced in the tournament. — Rey Joble

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