The Gensan Warriors quashed Zamboanga SiKat’s final assault to prevail, 75-70, on Saturday and tightened their grip on second spot in the South division of the SportsPlus MPBL (Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League) 2026 Season at the sweaty, people-packed Pola Gymnasium in Oriental Mindoro.
Zamboanga rallied from 16 points down to pull within 65-70, but Gensan held the fort with seven charities in the last minute to raise its record to 13-2, trailing only back-to-back division champion Quezon Province (9-0) in the round-robin elimination phase of the two-division, 28-team tournament.
In other games, Binan Tatak Gel banked on the hot hands of Nic Cabanero in the fourth quarter to subdue the Meycauayan Marilao Gems, 70-64, while The Mindoro Tamaraws rode on homegrown JC Recto to nip the Valenzuela Darkhorse, 93-91
Anton Eusebio drilled in back-to-back triples to push Gensan to a 54-37 spread with 4 minutes and 40 seconds left in the third quarter, from which Zamboanga couldn’t overhaul.
The 6-foot-5 former College of St. Benilde Blazer finished with 22 points, spiked by six triples, 3 rebounds and 2 assists to earn the SportsPlus best player honors.
Hesed Gabo provided support with 17 points, 3 rebounds and 2 assists, followed by Mark Cruz, with 8 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 steals.
Zamboanga fell to 4-9 despite the 20-point effort of Brandon Wilson, the 11-point, 9-rebound output of Joseph Gabayni, and 10 points each from Paeng Are, Levin Hernandez and Reggz Gabat, including a buzzer-beater triple that knotted the count, 32-32, at the half.
The 6-foot-2 Cabanero, former star of the University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers, poured in 11 points, including pivotal back-to-back triples, in that span as Binan notched its eighth straight win and climbed to 11-3.
