New Champions
The San Juan Knights are the new Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League Champions after they escaped the Davao Occidental Tigers right in front of the latter's home crowd.
How did the Knights finish off the Tigers in five (5) games?
Game 1: San Juan Knights Tame Davao Occidental Tigers
John Wilson posted an efficient performance of 21 points, eight rebounds, four steals, and three assists to lead the San Juan Knights' demolition of the Davao Occidental Tigers, 84-74, in the latter's Homecourt in Almendras Gym, Davao City during the Game 1 of the MPBL Datu Cup National Finals.
Mac Cardona chipped in 16 points on top of seven rebounds, five assists, and two steals to help the Knights tame their rivals in front of the feisty home crowd of the Tigers. Seven of his total points came in the Knights' 12-1 rampage late in the second quarter that put them ahead by 8 poins, 47-29 at the 1:31 mark of the quarter.
The Tigers mounted an uprising late in the third period as Mark Yee's triple cut the deficit to six, 54-60, but Wilson answered with four points in 10-4 counter that extended the lead to 14 early in the last canto.
Helping the Knight's cause is shifty guard Mike Ayonayon who had 11 markers of his own as they drew first blood in the best-of-five series.
Game 2: Davao Occidental Tigers Escapes San Juan Knights, 67-60
Billy Robles and Joseph Terso waxed hot from rainbow territory at crunch time to knock out the San Juan Knights, 67-60, in game 2 of the best-of-five series at the RMC gym in davao city.
Right off the bat, the Tigers clicked on all cylinders as they built a 21-13 lead at the end of the 1st Quarter. It seems the game was already on their hand after they established a 13-pt lead entering the fourth quarter.
The Knights, however, refused to give up as they mounted a furious 10-0 run at the start of the final canto to close the gap to just within three (3) points, 53-50. At this point, the home crowd was apparently anxious and quite stunned.
Nevertheless, the veterans of the Tigers took charge in the crucial minutes of the game when it mattered the most. Bonbon Custodio who had a dismal output in the first game scored three (3) straight points to put the Tigers ahead by four (4) points, 58-54 with 2:31 remaining in the game. In addition, he also grabbed a pivotal offensive rebound which led to Terso's clutch three (3) pointer that gave the Tigers a comfortable 71-64 lead with 1:15 left.
The celebration was short lived, however, as Macmac Cardona answered with a booming triple to keep their hopes alive, 61-57, with 1:05 remaining in the game.
But the game belonged to the Tigers this time. After a broken pass by Mark Yee, the ball found its way to Robles' hot hands who calmly sank the dagger three with only 40 seconds left. The said three point shot proved to be the final nail on the Knight's coffin who failed to capitalize on their next possession.
Game 3: San Juan Knights Claim 2-1 Series Lead
Jhonard Clarito emerged an unlikely hero as he poured in 12 points on top of 17 big rebounds, two (2) assists, and three (steals) to carry the San Juan Knights past the visiting Davao Occidental Tigers, 67-62, in game 3 of the best-of-five MPBL National Finals at the Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan city.
The Tigers took control of the game early as they built a 22-13 lead at the end of the first quarter. Surprisingly, Macmac Cardona didn't play the entire opening quarter.
When Cardona entered early at the second quarter, things got heated up as he was involved in several scramble with Bonbon Custodio. Tension almost flared up when Mike Ayonayon and Custodio got entangled. Cardona and Custodio then got involved in a verbal tussle which resulted to warnings to both of them for taunting.
The game was suspended briefly as commissioner Kenneth Duremdes tried to pacify both teams by talking with their respective head coaches. He also made a plea with the audience not to throw objects on the floor.
The physicality of the game somehow favored the Knights in the second quarter as they erased their early deficit and was poised to close the first half with a four (4) point advantage but the first half ended with a lucky buzzer-beater from Eman Calo which pulled the Tigers within two (2), 31-29.
The Tigers regained control of the game midway in the Third quarter when they rallied for a 7-0 run led by Bogs Raymundo who spread 10 points in the third canto alone. Nevertheless, Mike Ayonayon kept the game close for the Knights when he returned to the game from a lengthy stay at the bench due to early foul trouble.
In the end, it was the Knights who made the right plays down the stretch. After Custodio tied the game at 62-all with a triple, Clarito answered with a strong offensive rebound and a put back to tow the Knights ahead by two (2), 64-62 with 55 seconds left in the game. In the next possession, the Knight's tight defense pressured Raymundo to throw the ball away.
Afterwards, Ayonayon was able to track the offensive rebound off a miss by Cardona and he was immediately fouled by the Tigers. He sunk his first charity to provide a safe cushion for the Knights, 65-62 with 12 seconds remaining. However, he missed the second one.
What seems to be an opportunity for the Tigers to tie the game turned into a disaster as Adormeo rebounded the missed free throw but his forward pass when he was about to fall out of bounds was intercepted by Cardona. The Knights capitalized on the several crucial errors of the Tigers to finish them off, 67-62.
The Story So Far: Win the boards, Win the GameGame 3: San Juan Knights Claim 2-1 Series Lead
Jhonard Clarito emerged an unlikely hero as he poured in 12 points on top of 17 big rebounds, two (2) assists, and three (steals) to carry the San Juan Knights past the visiting Davao Occidental Tigers, 67-62, in game 3 of the best-of-five MPBL National Finals at the Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan city.
The Tigers took control of the game early as they built a 22-13 lead at the end of the first quarter. Surprisingly, Macmac Cardona didn't play the entire opening quarter.
When Cardona entered early at the second quarter, things got heated up as he was involved in several scramble with Bonbon Custodio. Tension almost flared up when Mike Ayonayon and Custodio got entangled. Cardona and Custodio then got involved in a verbal tussle which resulted to warnings to both of them for taunting.
The game was suspended briefly as commissioner Kenneth Duremdes tried to pacify both teams by talking with their respective head coaches. He also made a plea with the audience not to throw objects on the floor.
The physicality of the game somehow favored the Knights in the second quarter as they erased their early deficit and was poised to close the first half with a four (4) point advantage but the first half ended with a lucky buzzer-beater from Eman Calo which pulled the Tigers within two (2), 31-29.
The Tigers regained control of the game midway in the Third quarter when they rallied for a 7-0 run led by Bogs Raymundo who spread 10 points in the third canto alone. Nevertheless, Mike Ayonayon kept the game close for the Knights when he returned to the game from a lengthy stay at the bench due to early foul trouble.
In the end, it was the Knights who made the right plays down the stretch. After Custodio tied the game at 62-all with a triple, Clarito answered with a strong offensive rebound and a put back to tow the Knights ahead by two (2), 64-62 with 55 seconds left in the game. In the next possession, the Knight's tight defense pressured Raymundo to throw the ball away.
Afterwards, Ayonayon was able to track the offensive rebound off a miss by Cardona and he was immediately fouled by the Tigers. He sunk his first charity to provide a safe cushion for the Knights, 65-62 with 12 seconds remaining. However, he missed the second one.
What seems to be an opportunity for the Tigers to tie the game turned into a disaster as Adormeo rebounded the missed free throw but his forward pass when he was about to fall out of bounds was intercepted by Cardona. The Knights capitalized on the several crucial errors of the Tigers to finish them off, 67-62.
The importance of rebounding couldn't be emphasized enough. If we look into the numbers of the past three (3) games of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) National Finals, the team that dominated the rebounding department took the win.
In game 1, the San Juan Knights outrebounded the Davao Occidental Tigers, 39-31. As a result, the Knights romped away with a convincing 84-74 win in front of the Tiger's raucous home crowd.
After their humbling defeat, the Tigers learned their lesson so they made adjustments in the second game by inserting Bogs Raymundo in the starting lineup to beef up their front court. The duo of Raymundo and Mark Yee showed the way for the Tigers with 10 rebounds apiece en route to a 45-41 advantage for their team in terms of rebounds. Having controlled the boards, the Tigers didn't disappoint their home crowd this time as they tied the best-of-five series at 1-1.
The story in game 3 is all too familiar. But at this instance, it is the San Juan Knights who reasserted their dominance in rebounding by grabbing 49 rebounds compared to the 41 boards produced by the Tigers. Their rebounding advantage allowed them to score 14 second chance points, 7 points higher versus the Tigers and just enough to protect their lead. In fact, it was Jhonard Clarito's putback from an offensive rebound which gave the Knights a 64-62 lead with less than a minute left in the game. As expected, it's the Knights who secured the win after they escaped the Tigers, 67-62, to move one win away from the championship trophy.
Needless to say, rebounds alone will not win a game. A team, in order to win, still needs to perform well in other aspect of the game which the Knights actually did.
Tigers gave up too many fouls
It could be due to the physicality of the game or just plain carelessness, but the Tigers just shot their self in the foot by fouling too often. They recorded 23 fouls which allowed the Knights to take 26 freebies and convert 17 of them. In contrast, the Tigers fished only 10 fouls and sunk 12 charities out of 14 attempts.
The higher free throw conversion by the Knights negated their inefficiency in shooting the ball. While the Tigers shot the ball more efficiently at 35% clip compared to the Knight's 31%, the 5-point difference in free throws made in favor of the Knights was enough to seal the win for the home team.
Knight's tight defense forced turnovers
Not only did the tigers yield too many free throw attempts, they also fumbled the ball several times . The Knights smothered the Tigers with their sticky defense and forced them to commit many turnovers. In total, the Tigers lost the ball 25 times with two turnovers coming at the worst possible time.
Trailing by just 2 points down the stretch, Bogs Raymundo's pass was intercepted resulting to a turnover. In their next possession, Adormeo's outlet pass off a rebound from a free throw by Mike Ayonayon ended up in the hands of Macmac Cardona. The Tigers couldn't just execute at the final minutes which doomed their chance to regain homecourt advantage.
Game 4: Davao Occidental Tigers Force Do-or-die Game 5
The Ilonggo Superman arrived just on time to tow the Davao Occidental Tigers past the gritty San Juan Knights, 77-66, and to force a rubber match on their home court this coming April 25 at the RMC gym in Davao City.
Dubbed as the Ilonggo Superman, Billy Robles displayed a performance fit for a superhero as he posted 22 points and 18 strong rebounds which are both Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) career highs. On top of his effort, his teammates delivered as well to help their cause. Mark Yee had a noteworthy output by dropping 14 points and grabbing nine (9) rebounds. Likewise, Eman Calo and Joseph Terso spread 10 and 11 points respectively to keep the Knights at bay.
It was the Knights who took control of the game early with John Wilson and Orlan Wamar catching fire from downtown. They led by eight (8) at the end of the third which Mac Cardona extended to 10, 55-45 at the start of the fourth quarter.
At that time, it looked like the trophy is already on the Knight's bag. However, a bottle-throwing incident after an unsportsmanlike foul by Bogs Raymundo broke the momentum of the Knights. Once the game resumed after the fan who threw the water bottle was caught, the tide has turned in favor of the Tigers.
Trailing 52-57 with 7:52 left on the game, the rejuvenated Tigers went on a rampage as they unleashed a 25-9 rally until the final whistle. The furious rally stunned the raucous crowd who were ready to erupt for a celebration. They have no one to blame but the fan who threw the bottle. As they say, the most dangerous Tiger is a trapped Tiger.
With the win, the Tigers denied the Knights a home court celebration. The balloons will have to be shipped out to Davao as both teams will battle each other one last time for the coveted championship trophy.
Game 5: Clarito Buries The Dagger as San Juan Knights Claim 2018-2019 MPBL Championship
Game 5: Clarito Buries The Dagger as San Juan Knights Claim 2018-2019 MPBL Championship
Jhonard Clarito delivered the final dagger right through the Tigers' hearts in heroic fashion as he dropped timely baskets in the final stretch of the do-or-die Game 5 of the Championship series to lift the San Juan Knights, 87-86, against the home team Davao Occidental Tigers at the RMC gym in Davao City last Thursday night.
The Tigers had a slim lead and appeared to be in control of the game with barely a minute left. Trailing 84-81 with 1:12 remaining in the game, Clarito, however, staged a dramatic comeback by scoring the Knights' last 6 points.
He stole the ball off an errant inbound pass by Billy Robles then finished the fastbreak layup despite Robles'challenge to pull within one (1), 84-83, 1:05 left. In the next possession, Mark Yee fished a foul and calmly sunk two (2) free throws to put the Tigers back in the driver's seat, 86-83, 1:01 left. Incidentally, those free throws would be the last points scored by the Tigers this season.
In the succeeding play, Clarito's athleticism and knack for grabbing offsnsive rebounds and knocking down crucial putbacks were again on full display. After he missed a jump shot, the loose ball luckily bounced toward him just below the basket. Without wasting any time, he banked in the undergoal stab to cut the Tiger's lead to just a point, 86-85, with
40.57 seconds left.
The Tigers had a chance to pull away for good in their next possession but they couldn't execute. They decided to burn the clock then settled for a long distance heave by Eman Calo which only hit the rim. As fate would have it, Clarito corraled the defensive rebound.
With no timeout left, the Knights set up their offense with Ayonayon taking charge. The Tigers then fouled Ayonayon when he attempted to drive since they still have one (1) foul to give.
With 12.31 seconds remaining, the Knights inbounded the ball to its Knight in shining armor. Clarito received the inbound pass and immediately went to work. He eluded his guard then drove strongly to the basket. Despite the stretched arms of Mark Yee and Billy Robles, the ball kissed the glass and found the bottom of the net with 8.95 seconds left.
Shocked and with no timeout at their disposal, the Tigers opted for a long pass to Eman Calo in their court. Calo catched the inbound pass and had a chance to lay in the game winning basket but his shot was challenged and off target. The knights rebounded the missed shot and milked the clock until the final buzzer sounded.
With probably the biggest basket of his life, Clarito gave the San Juan Knights its third title after they won the 2000 and 2001 Championship of the now defunct Metropolitan Basketball Association (MBA). As champions, the Knights received the MPBL Championship Trophy worth P10 million and each player also received championship rings amounting to P100 thousand per piece.
For his brilliant performace throughout the series, Mike Ayonayon was recognized as the Finals Most Valuable Player.For his brilliant performace throughout the series, Mike Ayonayon was recognized as the Finals Most Valuable Player. His best performance came when the Knights needed it the most as he scored 33 points at 67% clip in addition to a rebound and two (2) steals.
Meanwhile, Mark Yee paced the Tigers with 27 points highlighted by two (2) slam dunks. He also contributed seven (7) rebounds, one (1) assist, and a steal. With their loss, the Tigers were denied a hometown celebration.
Meanwhile, Mark Yee paced the Tigers with 27 points highlighted by two (2) slam dunks. He also contributed seven (7) rebounds, one (1) assist, and a steal. With their loss, the Tigers were denied a hometown celebration.
-----------