Defending champion Pampanga flaunted depth and firepower as the Giant Lanterns battered the Bulacan Kuyas, 124-81, on Saturday in the MPBL (Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League) Sixth Season at the Calasiao Sports Complex in Pangasinan.
With seven Giant Lanterns piling twin digits, Pampanga zoomed beyond reach, 118-72, and posted its 13th straight win after an initial loss in the round-robin elimination phase of the 29-team tournament.
Kurt Spencer Reyson submitted a triple-double of 15 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists to go with 4 steals, but it was his fellow Giant Lantern Archie Concepcion who earned best player honors after barely missing a triple-double with 19 points, 13 rebounds and 9 assists.
Other Giant Lanterns who shone were Jeff Viernes with 18 points, 7 rebounds and 3 steals, homegrown Ronan Santos with 15 points and 6 rebounds, Jhaymo Eguilos with 10 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, plus 2 blocks, and Lervin Flores with 10 points, 9 rebounds and 4 assists.
Although the Giant Lanterns missed the services of 6-foot-8 Justine Baltazar and 6-6 Allen Bryant Liwag, they still dominated the boards, 67-41, and expectedly outscored the Kuyas inside the paint, 64-28.
With Reyson hitting 5 of 9 attempts and Concepcion making 3 of 5, the Giant Lanterns shot an impressive 14 of 27 (51.9 percent) from the 3-point zone.
Bulacan, which dropped to 2-12, got 19 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals from Jason Celis, 17 points and 4 rebounds from Jan Baltazar, 10 points, 5 rebounds, plus 3 assists from Eric James Jabel, and 9 points plus 11 rebounds from John Cayno Carandang.
The MPBL returns to the Batangas City Coliseum on Monday with Pasay battling Manila at 4 p.m., Davao against Abra at 6 p.m. and Valenzuela against Batangas at 8 p.m.