Defending NBTC Division 1 champions Fil-Am Nation Select began their title retention campaign in dominant fashion, overwhelming Top Flight Sports Canada with an 85-72 victory in the Burlington Seeding Round of the 2025 Smart-NBTC National Finals, presented by SM Supermalls, on Monday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
Rutgers commit Angelino Mark set the tone for the Fil-Ams with 20 points, five rebounds, and four assists. He was supported by Andrew Miller and Eian Lowe, who contributed 15 and 13 points, respectively.
“This is the youngest team I have ever coached, and the game is a lot of fun,” said 2008 NBA Coach of the Year and current Fil-Am Nation coach Byron Scott. “We want to go back-to-back. We have a lot of guys who love to compete.”
Fil-Am Nation Select relied on Mark’s leadership to build a commanding 25-point lead, 60-35, in the third quarter and never looked back, securing the top seed in the 32-team Philippine national under-19 championship, presented by SM Supermalls and Playtime Cares.
With the win, Fil-Am Nation Select set up a Pocari Sweat Super 32 matchup against the St. Jude College Dasmariñas Thaddeans.
Meanwhile, Top Flight Sports, which settled for the No. 2 seed, will face the USPF Baby Panthers.
Chad Gammad led the Fil-Canadians with 24 points, including four three-pointers, while Joey Panghulan added 14 points.
In another matchup, FilEuro Nation Select wasted no time securing the 19th seed with a 72-57 win over Sequoia Hotels Team NZ.
Gabe de Jesus and Allen Perez combined for 29 points to lead FilEuro, who will now face the Notre Dame of Midsayap Rams.
Sequoia Hotels Team NZ, the 20th seed, was paced by Arron Malonzo with 12 points and will take on the USJ-R Jaguar Cubs in the next round.
Bass Reefman delivered an impressive 30-point, 16-rebound performance to lead Proudly Pinoy Filcom Italy to a thrilling 77-72 come-from-behind victory over Jazzville Sports Middle East, earning the 17th seed.
They will now face Momsie’s Kitchenette Laguna. Jazzville, which secured the 18th seed, was led by Ralph Dizon’s 27 points, built on six three-pointers.
They will shift their focus to a matchup against Luid Kapampangan.
Meanwhile, Homegrown Australia survived a late-game rally from Batang Europa to clinch the No. 23 seed with a 64-55 victory.
They will face Chrisveil Sports Cavite in the next round, while Batang Europa will take on Toyomoto Auto Supply Davao in the Super 32.
In other results, Carl Matala (19 points) and Edryn Morales (12 points) powered FilAm Clifton Tigers past Crossover Canada, securing the 21st seed and a matchup with EZ Jersey-Doc Boleros.
Crossover Canada, on the other hand, will face Team Khalifa Cebu in the tournament, which is also sponsored by MNL Kingpin, Molten, Pocari Sweat, Burlington, Swish, and Buffalo’s Wings N’ Things.
