Caloocan quelled Pasay’s repeated rallies and prevailed, 82-74, on Thursday to retain the top spot in the MPBL 2026 Season at the Pasay Astrodome.
The Voyagers threatened twice, the last at 75-73, but the Batang Kankaloo countered behind key plays from Kymani Ladi in the closing seconds to stretch their winning streak to 11 games in the round-robin elimination phase of the two-division, 28-team tournament.
Ladi finished with 15 points, highlighted by a two-handed slam with 44.7 seconds left, alongside eight rebounds and three assists to help Batang Kankaloo pull away from the Quezon Huskers (8-0) in the overall race for playoff positioning.
The 6-foot-8 former Ateneo Blue Eagle earned Best Player honors over Jielo Razon, who had 13 points and two assists; Cris Bitoon, who added 10 points, four steals and two assists; and Eric Camson, who finished with 11 points.
Pasay stayed within striking distance at 68-66 after Christian Fajarito strung together seven straight points, and again at 73-71 following a similar surge from Cyril Gonzales, but Camson and Ladi delivered timely baskets to restore control.
The Voyagers dropped to 7-4, led by Fajarito’s 32 points, eight rebounds and two assists. Gonzales and homegrown Nico Quinal added nine points apiece.
In the second game, the Cebu Greats subdued the Valenzuela City Darkhorse, 89-70, to rise to 8-3.
Top Gun Mark Meneses led Cebu with 17 points, eight rebounds, three steals and two assists as the Greats shot efficiently from the field, converting 37 of 71 attempts against Valenzuela’s 25 of 72.
Meneses got ample support from Ron Dennison, who also finished with 17 points and two rebounds; Wowie Escosio with 14 points and eight rebounds; Simon Camacho and Alfrancis Tamsi with nine points each; and Cebuano veteran Dondon Hontiveros, who added eight points.
Valenzuela slipped to 5-6 despite 21 points and four rebounds from Angelo Obuyes and 20 points, seven rebounds and two assists from Jay Collado.
Earlier, Rizal XentroMall clobbered Bacolod, 107-72, to improve to 6-4.
Ahead by eight at halftime, the Rizal Golden Coolers broke the game open with an 83-55 surge, as Alwyn Alday and Jolo Mendoza each scored 10 points in a dominant third quarter.
Alday finished with 21 points, including five triples, and four rebounds, and was named Best Player over Mendoza, who added 17 points, three rebounds and two assists.
With JP Maguliano and Joel Lee Yu steering the offense, Rizal widened the gap to as much as 97-58, sending Bacolod down to 3-9.
Maguliano posted 12 points, six rebounds, three steals and two assists, while Billy Robles added 12 points, eight rebounds and three assists, and Yu chipped in 10 points and three assists.
The Golden Coolers dominated the boards, 50-30, and controlled the paint with a 56-10 advantage in points inside. They also dished out 38 assists against Bacolod’s 15.
Bacolod was led by 17 points each from John Kobe Dalisay and Emman Galman, while Ian Melencio added 10.
The MPBL returns to the Orion Sports Complex on Friday, featuring Iloilo against Batangas at 4 p.m., Quezon City versus San Juan at 6 p.m., and Basilan against host Bataan at 8 p.m.
