Caloocan stunned Manila once again, 66-65, on Saturday to secure a North Division semifinal showdown with top-seeded San Juan in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League Sixth Season Playoffs at a packed Paco Arena in Manila.
Trailing by five points with just 38 seconds remaining, the Batang Kankaloo leaned on a clutch three-pointer from Jeramer Cabanag and a layup from Marion Magat to replicate their narrow 79-78 win in Game One, clinching the best-of-three quarterfinal series.
The Manila SV Batang Sampaloc Stars had two chances to take the lead in the final 8 seconds, but Carl Bryan Cruz missed both attempts, sealing Caloocan’s underdog victory and sending the Batang Kankaloo into celebration.
As the No. 5 seed, Caloocan will now face the formidable San Juan Knights, who earlier defeated the Rizal Xentromall Golden Coolers, 82-70, to sweep their own quarterfinal series.
Caloocan led 53-47 after three quarters, but Manila surged back with seven straight points—courtesy of a triple from Joshua Torralba, two free throws from Jorey Napoles, and a layup by John Cantimbuhan—to take control.
Cabanag broke the scoring drought for Caloocan with 7:05 left in the game, setting the stage for a dramatic finish.
The Stars pushed ahead 66-61 after three-pointers from Cruz, Torralba, and Napoles as part of a 10-3 run.
However, Cabanag responded with a crucial three-pointer after faking out Torralba, who later committed a costly inbound turnover.
Cabanag was named the Daily Fantasy Best Player of the Game, finishing with 15 points—including three triples in the second half—along with 8 rebounds and 3 assists.
No other Caloocan player scored in double figures, but Joshua Flores contributed 8 points, while Antonio Bonsubre Jr., Reil Cervantes, Gabby Espinas, and Joco Tayongtong chipped in 6 points each.
Bonsubre grabbed 11 rebounds and Espinas added 8, helping Caloocan dominate the boards, 52-44, as Manila played without suspended center Greg Slaughter.
Caloocan Coach Ronnie Dojillo stressed that his team must maintain their energy and intensity if they hope to overcome the highly-touted San Juan Knights in the semifinals.
