MANILA, Philippines — Quezon City leaned on MJ Joson and Kobe Monje to stun Meycauayan Marilao, 78-69, on Wednesday and gain traction in the SportsPlus MPBL (Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League) 2026 Season at the Pasay Astrodome.
Joson, a discovery from Manila Central University, and Monje, a former track and field jumper turned basketball player in Letran, combined for 19 points in the fourth quarter, surpassing Meycauayan's total of 14 in the period and completing Quezon City's rally from a 24-37 deficit.
The 23-year-old Joson wound up with 22 points, 10 rebounds, 4 steals and 3 assists to clinch the SportsPlus best player honors over the 6-foot-4 Monje, with 17 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists, and hand Quezon City its first win in three games.
Other Black Bulls who delivered were Brian Rosalin with 12 points and 3 assists, and Kenz Rai Diokno with 7 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists.
Meycauayan closed the gap, 69-72, following a triple by Agem Miranda, but Monje scored on a reverse layup and completed the 3-point play, and Joson drilled in a triple to forge the final count.
The Black Bulls, with Carmel Espinosa grabbing 12 rebounds, dominated the boards, 51-38, and exploited this advantage to outscore the Gems in the paint, 40-14.
Meycauayan got 19 points and 7 rebounds from Robin Nayve, 13 points and 4 rebounds from Migs Corteza, and 11 points plus 3 rebounds from Shawn Argente.
The tournament visits the Kamalig Sports Complex in Orion, Bataan, on Thursday, featuring games between Gensan and Marikina at 4 p.m., Manila against Bacolod at 6 p.m., and Bulacan against Bataan at 8 p.m. TMT
