Quezon pulled away early and never looked back, defeating Mindoro, 81–60, on Saturday to move closer to the MPBL 2026 Season leaders at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.
Powered by Christian Pagaran, Michael Canete, and Diego Dario, the Huskers broke the game open in the first quarter with a 12-point burst to build a 28–15 lead, a cushion the Tamaraws were never able to recover from.
Displaying the same form that made them back-to-back South Division champions, Quezon stretched its advantage to as much as 78–54 before coasting to its second straight win in the round-robin elimination phase of the 28-team, two-division tournament.
Early pacesetters Caloocan, Bataan, and Gensan remain unbeaten with 3–0 records.
Michael Canete led the Huskers with a double-double of 12 points and 12 rebounds to claim Best Player honors over Christian Pagaran, who added 14 points and 3 rebounds. Jolo Manansala contributed 12 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 assists, while John Abate finished with 10 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists.
Mindoro, a playoff team last season, dropped to 1–2 as only Marion Magat and Joseph Sedurifa provided steady resistance. Magat finished with 13 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 assists, while Sedurifa had 10 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists.
Quezon dominated the boards, 55–29, and capitalized in the paint, 32–12.
In the nightcap, debuting Pasig shook off a slow start to rout Parañaque, 76–56. Trailing 30–37 at halftime, the Pasigueños caught fire in the fourth quarter, pulling away by as many as 17 points, 72–55, to hand the Patriots their fourth straight loss.
Warlo James Batac led Pasig with 28 points, 6 assists, 4 rebounds, and 2 steals, followed by Ahron Estacio with 15 points, 4 steals, and 2 rebounds, and Jacob Galicia with 14 points, 9 rebounds, and 3 assists.
For Parañaque, Alvin Pasaol finished with 18 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists, Marlon Monte had 12 points, 11 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals, while Ryusei Koga added 11 points and 4 assists.
In the opening game, Ilagan Isabela outgunned Imus, 92–75, to improve to 2–1.
Veteran Alex Cabagnot led the Cowboys with 18 points, 4 assists, and 2 rebounds to take Best Player honors over skipper Art Dela Cruz, who had 17 points, 11 rebounds, and 6 assists.
Imus made things interesting after a 7–0 run capped by Jaypee Belencion’s triple trimmed the gap to 67–70, but Donald Gumaru responded with five straight points before JP Cauilan buried a triple to restore control, 78–67, with 6:10 left.
Gumaru finished with 12 points, 4 assists, and 3 rebounds, while Cauilan added 13 points, highlighted by three triples, along with 4 rebounds and 2 assists.
Imus fell to 1–2 despite solid efforts from Ralph Robin (18 points, 4 rebounds), Janjan Salazar (15 points, 5 assists, 4 rebounds), Eroll Soriano (14 points, 5 rebounds, 2 blocks), and Joseph Mark Marquez (13 points, 4 rebounds).
The MPBL heads to the San Jose Del Monte Sports Complex in Bulacan on Monday for a triple-header: Cebu vs Basilan at 4 p.m., Batangas vs Abra at 6 p.m., and Caloocan vs Meycauayan Marilao at 8 p.m.
