Rizal XentroMall pulled off a dominant upset, routing third-seeded Gensan, 96-74, on Monday at Paco Arena to sweep their quarterfinal series and advance to the South Division semifinals of the 2026 Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) season.
The sixth-seeded Golden Coolers will face second-seeded Biñan Tatak Gel, which also completed a quarterfinal sweep.
Rizal's Hot Shooting Sinks Gensan
Rizal built its victory around an impressive performance from beyond the arc, converting 14 of 27 three-point attempts for 51.9%. Gensan, meanwhile, made just eight of 32 attempts.
Former Mapúa star Laurenz Victoria led Rizal with 18 points, six rebounds, four assists, and three steals, including four three-pointers on five attempts. He was named Best Player of the game.
Alwyn Alday added 16 points, while Mark Yee scored 10 on perfect three-point shooting before being ejected late after receiving two technical fouls.
Billy Robles contributed seven of his eight points in the third quarter, helping Rizal extend its lead to 66-50.
Gensan's Hesed Gabo, an MPBL All-Star, finished with 14 points and six assists, while Mark Cruz added 13 points. The Warriors trailed by as many as 25 points.
Biñan Completes Sweep Behind Cabanero
Earlier, Biñan defeated seventh-seeded Mindoro, 91-77, to become the South Division's first semifinalist.
MVP frontrunner Nic Cabanero, formerly of the University of Santo Tomas, delivered 25 points, 10 rebounds, three assists, and three steals, scoring 19 points in the second half.
Mindoro trimmed the deficit to 65-74, but a seven-point Biñan run, including five points from Cabanero, helped seal the victory. Veteran Marc Pingris added nine points and eight rebounds, while Mindoro's Bambam Gamalinda led all scorers with 30 points in the loss.
Biñan controlled the interior, outscoring Mindoro, 58-24, in points in the paint.
North Division Quarterfinals Resume
The North Division quarterfinals resumed Tuesday at the Caloocan Sports Complex.
San Juan and Caloocan, both holding 1-0 series leads, were one victory away from securing their respective semifinal spots.
