THE Cebu Greats pulled off a stunning upset against the heavily favored GenSan Warriors, 100-94, in the 2025 Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) at the Villar Coliseum in Las Piñas City on Saturday, Aug. 2, 2025.
The tandem of Mark Meneses and Jun Manzo proved lethal for coach Junthy Valenzuela’s squad, whose hopes of entering the next round have now been slightly revived.
Currently sitting at 13th place in the South Division with a 6-15 record, Cebu needs to climb to 10th place to claim the last playoff spot.
“Yes. There are eight games left, and we need to win seven. The remaining games aren’t too tough, but our chances of advancing are slim,” admitted Valenzuela.
Up next for the Cebu Greats is a matchup against the Marikina Shoemakers (4-17), who are also in 13th place in the North Division.
With the loss, GenSan (13-8) dropped to fifth place in the standings.
Mark Meneses delivered a double-double performance with 23 points, 15 rebounds, and six assists -- earning him the Best Player of the Game honors.
Flashy point guard Manzo dazzled with 23 points and six assists. Jan Jamon chipped in 13 points and five rebounds, while big man Alvin Baetiong added 11 notches and six boards.
JR Quiñahan did not see action for undisclosed reasons.
The closely contested match forged multiple ties before the Cebu Greats pulled away with an 11-7 rally to close the third quarter with a 73-69 lead.
Their advantage swelled to 81-71 with 6:06 remaining in the fourth quarter, thanks to key plays of Jamon, Baetiong and a short jumper by Dolan Adlawan, who finished with nine points.
Still, the GenSan Warriors never raised the white flag and instead mounted a 10-2 run fueled by a three-pointer from Kyle Dominic Tolentino and consecutive free throws from Nico Elorde to narrow the gap to 83-81 with 3:13 left in the game.
After a timeout, Cebu regrouped behind Meneses, Manzo, and Baetiong to reestablish momentum.
GenSan managed to pull within two again, 93-95, but that was their last real push as Manzo and Meneses took turns at the free-throw line in the final seconds to seal the victory.
Tolentino led GenSan with 25 points, while Joel Lee Yu and Mark Cruz each added 13. (JBM)