Jil Talas erupts as Batangas-NZ Bluefire routs Pasig to close WMPBL first round in 2nd

(C) WMPBL

Jil Talas waxed hot from beyond the arc, drilling five three-pointers—all coming in the second half—to finish with a game-high 22 points, alongside seven rebounds off the bench for Batangas-New Zealand Bluefire.

Holding a nine-point cushion at 65-56 in the fourth quarter, the Valkyries caught fire with an 18-2 run, highlighted by Talas knocking down three triples during that stretch to push the lead to 83-58 with five minutes remaining—a surge the Queenpin could not recover from.

Reigning MVP Afril Bernardino filled up the stat sheet with 20 points and 10 rebounds, along with five blocks, three assists, and three steals in nearly 26 minutes of action.

Snow Peñaranda added 12 points, nine rebounds, and four assists, while Camille Claro chipped in 10 points, five assists, and four rebounds in Batangas-New Zealand Bluefire’s fourth win in the tourney backed by Aktive.

(C) WMPBL

On the other hand, Pasig continued to slide down the standings, suffering its third straight loss to drop to a 1-4 record, tied with Caloocan at the bottom of the standings.

Gabi Bade once again led Pasig with 13 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists, while LJ Miranda also finished with 13 points and eight boards. Nikka Villanueva added 12 points and eight rebounds in the loss.

The Scores:

Batangas-New Zealand Bluefire 93 – Talas 22, Bernardino 20, Peñaranda 12, Claro 10, Bariquit 7, Torres 7, Aquino 6, Lozada 4, Calang 3, Tongco 2

Pasig 65 – Bade 13, Miranda 13, Villanueva 12, Natural 8, Sario 6, Cancio 5, Mendaros 3, Padilla 3, Parungao 2, Binaohan 0

Quarterscores: 16-20, 38-31, 65-52, 93-65