Meralco and MCFASolver swept their way to the Leg 5 quarterfinals of the Philippine Basketball Association 3×3 Second Conference on Monday at the Ayala Mall Fairview Terraces.
The Bolts topped Pool B with a 3-0 record, while the Tech Centrale did the same in Pool A at 2-0 as they were among the early teams to advance in the knockout stage set Tuesday.
Jeff Manday went on a scoring spree in the final minutes of Meralco’s 18-17 win over Purefoods that formalized its entry into the next round.
Manday finished with nine points and helped preserve the unbeaten slate of the Bolts, who escaped with the thrilling victory after a last-second turnover committed by the Titans.
The Bolts earlier defeated San Miguel, 22-14, and Terrafirma, 21-13.
On the other hand, MCFASolver remained on track of repeating its Leg 4 title run by completing its pool stage assignments with back-to-back victories over Blackwater, 22-18, and Cavitex, 16-14.
The Braves also booked a quarterfinal seat following a 22-11 rout of Blackwater in the same group, leaving the Smooth Razor out of contention with its second straight loss.
Five more berths in the next round are still being disputed as of press time.
Still in the running are Terrafirma, San Miguel and Purefoods in Pool B, and Pioneer, Northport, TNT and Barangay Ginebra in Pool C.
