Caloocan Batang Kankaloo endured scary moments before tripping Rizal Xentro Mall, 68-65, on Tuesday, April 14, and gaining the solo lead in the SportsPlus MPBL (Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League) 2026 Season at the Ynares Center Montalban in Rizal Province.
Trailing, 52-58, with only 5 minutes and 36 seconds to go, the Batang Kankaloo leaned on prized recruits Kymani Ladi, Kean Baclaan and Dom Escobar to notch their second straight win in the elimination phase of the two-division, 28-team tournament.
The 6-foot-8 Ladi fired seven points in that span, combining with fellow former Ateneo Blue Eagle Escobar and former La Salle Green Archer Baclaan to bail the Batang Kankaloo out of trouble and hand the Golden Coolers their second straight loss.
Baclaan converted both his two charities with 12.7 seconds left for a 66-63 Caloocan lead, and so did Escobar with 4 seconds to go for the final count..
Rizal had a chance to force overtime, but Jolo Mendoza’s buzzer-beater triple went out.
Alwyn Alday could have knotted the count with 5.3 seconds left after getting fouled by Escobar from long distance, but Rizal’s top gunner missed the second of three free throws.
Ladi, who became the first back-to-back winner of the SportsPlus best player award, posted 13 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals, followed by Jammer Jamito with 13 points and 2 rebounds, Baclaan with 11 points, 6 assists, 5 rebounds and 2 steals, and Escobar with 8 points.
Rizal drew 17 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals from JP Maguliano, 11 points and 4 rebounds from Mark Yee, and 10 points plus 5 rebounds from JP Sarao.
The Bataan Risers weathered the Iloilo United Royals’ final onslaught and prevailed, 92-82, in the opener, while the Bacolod Masskaras rallied to beat the Imus Yangkees, 111-105, in the second game.
Trailing, 78-91, early in the fourth quarter, Bacolod detonated a 13-2 bomb, 11 by Marjun Wahing, to threaten at 91-93. Imus bunched six points to regain control, 99-91, only to be sidetracked by a 13-point Bacolod bundle, 104-99.
Veteran Ian Melencio paced Bacolod with 34 points, 18 assists, 7 rebounds and 3 steals, followed by Hance Lleva with 21 points, 8 rebounds and 3 steals, Emman Galman with 16 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals, and Wahing with 14 points and 5 rebounds.
Imus stumbled despite Ralph Robin’s 23 points and 3 rebounds, Janjan Salazar’s 18 points, 11 rebounds and 5 steals, Jordan Rios’ 17 points, 5 rebounds and 2 steals, Joseph Mark Marquez’s 16 points and 8 rebounds, and Gian Lloyd Abrigo’s 12 points, 4 rebounds and 2 steals.
Iloilo dropped a 16-2 bomb bridging the third and fourth quarters to move within 65-70, but Bataan countered with a 13-2 salvo to pull away anew.
Robbi Darang, Bataan’s prized find from Diliman College, pooled 14 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 steals to nip Hubert Cani, who tallied 15 points, 5 assists and 2 rebounds, for SportsPlus best player honors.
Carl Bringas also delivered for Bataan with 12 points, 6 rebounds and 3 assists, followed by homegrown Yves Sazon with 11 points and 6 rebounds, and Chris Javier, with 9 points, six in the fourth quarter, 8 rebounds and 4 assists.
The veteran-laden United Royals drew 20 points and 2 assists from Vic Manuel, 17 points and 17 rebounds from Jorey Napoles, and 16 points, 3 rebounds and 2 steals from Paul Sanga.
The tournament resumes at the Pasay Astrodome on Thursday, featuring games between Cebu and San Juan at 4 p.m., Quezon City and Biñan at 6 p.m., and Paranaque against Pasay at 8 p.m
