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Manila Bulletin devider Sports devider Rizal rallies past Voyagers, revs up South playoff drive

Rizal rallies past Voyagers, revs up South playoff drive

Published Aug 9, 2026 09:56 am

At A Glance

  • The Rizal XentroMall Golden Coolers turned hot in the third quarter and bested the Pasay Voyagers, 67-61, on Saturday, Aug. 8, to rev up their playoff drive in the SportsPlus MPBL (Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League) 2026 Season at The Capital Arena in Ilagan, Isabela.

The Rizal XentroMall Golden Coolers turned hot in the third quarter and bested the Pasay Voyagers, 67-61, on Saturday, Aug. 8, to rev up their playoff drive in the SportsPlus MPBL (Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League) 2026 Season at The Capital Arena in Ilagan, Isabela.

Trailing, 27-38, at halftime, the Golden Coolers blitzed the Voyagers, 22-3, in the third quarter to seize control at 50-40 en route to their 13th win against 7 losses in the round-robin elimination phase of the two-division, 26-team tournament.

Rizal is in 6th spot in the South division and is on track to advance to the quarterfinal playoffs.

Jolo Mendoza and Billy Robles presided over that Rizal scoring spurt that sent the Voyagers down to 11-10.

Mendoza, a former member of Batang Gilas, finished with 18 points, spiked by three triples, and 5 rebounds to clinch the SportsPlus best player honors.

Alwyn Alday supported Mendoza with 9 points and 2 rebounds, followed by Robles with 7 points, 12 rebounds, 2 assists and 2 blocks, including a crucial block off a driving Lennard Santiago in the dying seconds.

Rizal coach Don Dulay said he wants "to build a defensive culture for the Golden Coolers," adding that he's focusing on overall improvement and building camaraderie among the players.

Pasay drew 15 points and 13 rebounds from Christian Fajarito, 11 points and 3 rebounds from Renz Alcoriza, and 10 points plus 3 rebounds from Santiago.

Fajarito joined the MPBL 1,000-point club and was rewarded with the ball he used to reach the plateau by Commissioner Emmer Oreta.

The tournament returns to the Paco Arena on Monday, featuring games between Paranaque and Binan at 3 p.m., Marikina and Mindoro at 5 p.m., and host Manila and San Juan at 7 p.m.

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