BATANGAS CITY—Jhaymo Eguilos played a near perfect game, making all but one of his field goal attempts and the Batangas City Athletics-Tanduay survived another big fight back from the Muntinlupa Cagers-Angelis Resort before hacking out a 78-74 win in Game 2 of their best-of-five championship series of the MPBL-Anta Rajah Cup at the packed Batangas City Coliseum.
The Athletics can sweep the series with a win in Game 3 and become the inaugural champion of this fastest growing regional basketball league in the country put up by Senator Manny Pacquiao with former PBA MVP Kenneth Duremdes serving as commissioner.
Eguilos hit 7-of-8 shots from the field on his way to finishing with 16 markers to pace the Athletics, who squandered a nine-point lead entering the final two minutes before Teytey Teodoro, the hero of Game 1, came through with important charities to seal the win for Batangas City and allow his team to take a commanding 2-0 lead.
Leading 72-63 with only 2:23 left, Batangas City saw its advantage wiped out by a spirited charge from Muntinlupa, which unloaded an 11-3 run off Allan Mangahas’ three-pointer, Dhon Reverente’s jumper and a lay up from Chito Jaime.
But breaks of the game went Batangas City’s way as a miscommunication between Jaime and Mangahas resulted to a turnover and spoiled Muntinlupa’s chance of tying the game or grabbing the lead with a three-point conversion. The Cagers were only trailing by two, 76-74, when Jaime decided to tap the ball to Mangahas during a rebound play. Mangahas didn’t anticipate it, resulting to another extra possession for the Athletics.
Teodoro sank two free throws in the last five seconds for the final tally.
Muntinlupa engaged Batangas City in a spirited battle in the first 10 minutes of play and was in fact leading by a point by the end of the first period. The Cagers were held to just 10 points in the second period while allowing the Athletics to score 25 as the top seeded squad pulled away, 38-24 by half time.
Batangas City coach Mac Tan expected the finals to become a series of runs that he was left unperturbed even if Muntinlupa was able to come close in the endgame.
“That’s expected in the finals,” added Tan. “Basketball is a game of spurts, especially when you have two teams which really wanted to win. It’s just a matter of which team will want it more. So I told the guys you have to show them that we wanted to win more.”
Now on the verge of winning the championship, Tan doesn’t want to get carried away.
“We’re taking a break not because we have a 2-0 lead. We wanted them to be with their families, but on Monday, we’re going to start working hard again in practice,” added Tan. “This is not the best time to celebrate as we haven’t achieved anything yet.”
BATANGAS 78 – Eguilos 16, Acuna 9, Teodoro 9, Quinto 9, Rogado 9, Olayon 7, Varilla 6, Grimaldo 4, Santos 4, Alvarez 3, Villamor 2.
MUNTINLUPA 74 – Jaime 18, Mangahas 15, Moralde 15, Llagas 9, Buenaflor 6, Ylagan 5, Reverente 4, Apreku 2, Vergara 0, Salaveria 0, Stevens 0.
Quarters: 13-14, 38-24, 60-46, 78-74.