Zamboanga SiKat stunned reigning back-to-back champion Pampanga, 76-63, on Friday to prove it’s a legit contender in the Manny Pacquiao presents 1xBet-MPBL 2025 Season at the Caloocan Sports Complex.
The Zamboanguenos bunched 10 points to break away at 59-42 in the third quarter, then clustered nine in the fourth to seal their sixth straight win for an11-2 record in the round-robin elimination phase of the 30-team tournament.
Pampanga committed 21 turnovers that netted 11 points for Zamboanga, which trails only Nueva Ecija (11-0), Abra (11-1) and San Juan (10-1) in the race for playoff slots.
In other games, the Abra Weavers trounced the Paranaque Patriots, 97-81, in the opener to extend their win streak to nine, while the Caloocan Batang Kankaloo thwarted Imus Braderhood, 58-52, in the nightcap to tally its third straight victory and climb to 9-4
Reggz Gabat, a 6-foot guard out of the San Sebastian Golden Stags, posted 20 points, 5 rebounds and 2 steals to earn best player honors for Zamboanga, which drew 12 points, 7 rebounds, 5 steals and 2 blocks from James Paul Una and 12 points, 3 assists and 2 rebounds from JP Cauilan.
Michael Are also shone for Zamboanga with 9 points, 9 rebounds, 6 assists and 2 steals, and Achie Altamirano with 9 points, 5 rebounds, 4 steals and 2 assists.
Pampanga, which suffered its first back-to-back losses in the last three years, dropped to 9-3 as Archie Concepcion struggled to post 14 points and 3 rebounds, followed by Donald Gumaru with 13 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists.
Dave Ildefonso showed why he’s Abra’s Top Gun with 31 points, spiked by six triples, 5 rebounds and 4 assists, followed by Yousef Taha with 13 points and 11 rebounds, Encho Serrano with 13 points and 4 rebounds, and Raven Gonzales with 9 points and 10 rebounds.
With Gonzales and Taha, both 6-foot-7, dominating the shaded lane, the Weavers ruled the boards, 63-31, and translated this to 21 second-chance points against the Patriots’ eight.
