Philip Manalang nails game winner as Basilan wins MPBL Invitational title vs Nueva Ecija

Philip Manalang saved the day for Basilan-Jumbo Plastic Medical Depot to outlast Nueva Ecija in the finals, 83-80, and rule the Chooks-to-Go Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League Invitational on late Thursday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.

With only 1.9 tickets left, the former University of the East standout, who was struggling offensively all game long, banked the buzzer-beater three to give his team the advantage.

That shot gave Basilan the first-ever professional title of MPBL.

With his late-game heroics, Manalang was also awarded the Final MVP plum as he also finished with six assists and two rebounds in 35 minutes of action.

"For me, the win tonight is God-given," said Basilan head coach Jerson Cabiltes, who also earned the Ato Badolato Coach of the Tournament award.

"So talagang gusto naming makuha 'to dahil yun nga, nine months ago we were in this situation and hindi kami napagbigyan and then ito pala yung balik na biyaya samin ng Panginoon."

The team bagged a total of P2,000,000 from Chooks-to-Go. Jumbo Plastic added P1,000,000 while Medical Depot chipped in P100,000 to the prize pot.

Aside from Manalang, Encho Serrano also provided the spark for Basilan as he finished with 15 points and nine rebounds while Michael Juico and Jonathan Uyloan had 15 markers each.

Jay Collado recorded 15 points, seven assists, five rebounds, and two blocks while JR Taganas was a force inside the paint with 17 big rebounds to go along with nine points.

Tournament MVP Michael Mabulac carried the load for the Rice Vanguards, collecting 24 points and 11 rebounds.

Justin Gutang added 13 points, seven boards, and three assists. Renz Palma had 11 points and seven rebounds while Villarias ended with 10 points and four boards.

The scores:

Basilan-Jumbo Medical 83 - Collado 15, Serrano 15, Uyloan 15, Juico 15, Taganas 9, Reyes 6, Bringas 4, Manalang 3, Siruma 1, Gimpayan 0, Gabo 0.

Nueva Ecija 80 - Mabulac 24, Gutang 13, Palma 11, Villarias 10, Balucanag 5, Sarao 4, Gozum 4, Bitoon 3, Dario 3, Sumang 3.

Quarterscores: 17-20, 35-36, 53-52, 74-74, 83-80