MANILA – The Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) slapped Arwind Santos with a hefty penalty after hitting Tonton Bringas in the face during the Monday night game between Basilan and GenSan in the South Division quarterfinals
In an announcement late Wednesday night, the league suspended the Portmasters' star forward indefinitely and ordered him to pay a PHP100,000 monetary sanction.
"We condemn the incident and the MPBL will not tolerate such actions, especially during the playoffs," MPBL commissioner Kenneth Duremdes said in a statement.
The incident happened at the 8:32 mark of the fourth quarter in Game 2 of the series between the two teams at the Malolos Convention Center.
Both Santos and Bringas were jockeying for position when Santos, seemingly not liking Bringas' nudge, suddenly hit him in the face, which was automatically merited with a disqualifying foul.
MPBL rules automatically suspend an ejected player in his next game, but the severity of Bringas' injury, in which he suffered a cut in his left eye area, prompted Duremdes to upgrade the penalty to his fellow former Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Most Valuable Player.
Duremdes added that the upgrading of Santos' suspension should serve as a stern warning to other players who tend to get a bit too emotional during heated moments.
"The league has the full authority to impose sanctions on this deplorable act, and we hope that our measures help put these behaviors to an immediate end," Duremdes concluded.
Basilan and GenSan will meet again on Friday night for the right to face Quezon in the South semifinals.
The Portmasters were supposed to host Game 2, but the unavailability of an arena in Basilan forced them to move the game to the Malolos Convention Center, the home of North Division squad Bulacan Kuyas.
With the Huskers already sweeping the Mindoro Tamaraws in their own round-of-16 tie, the Portmasters are the designated hosts again for Game 3.
However, Basilan remains unavailable for a possible home stand on Friday, prompting the Portmasters to move the rubber match to the home of the Parañaque Patriots, the Olivarez College Coliseum.
Regardless of what happens, though, Santos' suspension will spill beyond Game 3 depending on how long the ban lasts until the MPBL decides to lift it.
San Juan books North semis spot
Meanwhile, San Juan booked a place in the North semifinals after eliminating Pasay with a 77-66 win at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig.
The Knights did not mind losing the right to host the Voyagers due to the Playtime FilOil Centre in San Juan City being reserved for the NCAA games, as the San Juan side dominated for most of the game.
Raul Soyud led San Juan with 17 points on 8-of-11 shooting, 13 rebounds, two assists, two blocks, and one steal.
Dexter Maiquez added 15 points, 12 rebounds, two assists, two steals, and one block off the bench.
Christian Fajarito put up 23 points, six rebounds, one assist, two blocks, and two steals for Pasay, which remains winless overall in the MPBL Playoffs.
The Knights will await the winner of another North quarterfinal clash between the Nueva Ecija Rice Vanguards and Pangasinan Heatwaves.
Nueva Ecija forced a Game 3 against Pangasinan with an 82-72 win earlier in the night, also at the Ynares Sports Arena.
Will McAloney put up 24 points on 8-of-12 shooting, nine rebounds, and one steal to lead the Rice Vanguards, who held the Heatwaves to just nine points in the fourth quarter to pull away.
Billy Robles added 13 points, four rebounds, one assist, one steal, and one block, while Robby Celiz chipped in 12 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, and one steal.
Hesed Gabo put up 13 points, five rebounds, and two assists for seventh-seeded Pangasinan, who failed to complete a shock sweep of second-seeded Nueva Ecija and will now need to play again at the Nueva Ecija Coliseum in Palayan in the deciding Game 3 on Saturday night. (PNA)