THE Pampanga Giant Lanterns bested the Bacoor Strikers 82-77 on Saturday to sweep their national title series and complete a dominant run in the MPBL (Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League) Fifth Season at the Strike Gymnasium in Bacoor, Cavite.
Hounded by the Strikers up to the homestretch, the Giant Lanterns’ Justine Baltazar and Encho Serrano rose to the challenge, combining for eight points against a free throw by Bacoor to seal their third straight win 78-70 with 50 second left and cut short the best-of-five affair.
The Giant Lanterns dominated the Strikers in Game One 71-58 and survived Game Two 68-65 at the Bren Z. Guiao Convention Center in San Fernando, Pampanga.
Pampanga thus became the first MPBL team to blank its National Finals rival, shadowing the championship trips of Batangas in 2018, San Juan in 2019, Davao in 2020 and Nueva Ecija in 2022.
Bannered by Baltazar, who was the runaway MVP in the regular season and the Finals, Pampanga topped the elimination round with a 26-win, 2-loss card en route to a sterling overall record of 35-2 this year.
Pampanga posted 2-0 sweeps over Marikina and Caloocan in the quarterfinals and semifinals, respectively, and duplicated the feat against San Juan in the North Division Finals.
