A free throw helped Muntinlupa squeak a win, 91-90, against San Juan on Tuesday, September 12 at the Marikina Sports Center.
The outcome of the game hinged on the last play, with just four seconds left on the clock, when Orlan Wamar Jr. committed a foul against Ian Melencio. That mistake ultimately proved to be the deciding factor in their loss, as the Muntinlupa cager successfully made both free throws, giving them that one-point lead.
By the end of the game, the Cagers showed a remarkable free throw shooting performance, making 21 of their 24 attempts.
Muntinlupa was led by John Amores, who scored the game’s most points with 19. His teammates, Dave Moralde and Melencio were crucial to the win as well, adding 17 and 14 points, respectively. Melencio also had 11 assists to help the Cagers climb to 15-10 in the overall standings of the 29th round robin elimination.
Moralde went for a remarkable 9 out of 10 shooting, whereas Melencio was flawless, especially after sinking both of his shots in the final four seconds. His clutch performance enabled the Cagers to withstand the San Juan Knights’ revival despite trailing by as many as 17 points early in the fourth quarter (58-77).
For the Knights, Wamar contributed 14 points, eight assists, seven rebounds, and six steals ; Adrian Nocum and Zachary Huang contributed 11 and 10, respectively.
Despite Michael Calisaan’s double-double performance of 15 points and ten rebounds, San Juan could not secure the victory and dropped to 19-6 on the season.
Next Schedule of MPBL: West Arena in Valenzuela
- Rizal versus Caloocan at 4 pm
- Bacoor versus Negros at 6 p.m.
- Valenzuela versus Paranaque at 8 p.m.
Support your favorite team through OKBet!
