Ex-MPBL stars light up PBA scoreboard

The Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) has expressed delight over the successful plays being made by dribblers who once saw action in the league.

The latest to make his presence in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Commissioner’s Cup is Mark Nonoy, the crack guard from the Iloilo United Royals who scored a career-high 33 points, including five treys and two four-point plays, four rebounds and four assists in Terrafirma’s 117-108 win over powerhouse TNT Tropang Giga recently.

Nonoy, a speedy 43-inch vertical leaper, earned the game’s best player honors, duplicating the feat of fellow MPBL products Justine Baltazar (Pampanga Giant Lanterns), Adrian Nocum (San Juan Knights), Jhonard Clarito (San Juan Knights) and Arvin Tolentino (Batangas City Athletics).

Clarito and Tolentino have even earned Player of the Week accolades.

Slowly finding the form that made him the 2024 top draft pick, Pampanga superstar Baltazar tallied 20 points, 10 rebounds, three steals and two blocks in Converge’s 127-109 rout of Blackwater. It followed up the back-to-back MPBL Most Valuable Player 16-point, seven-rebound, four-assist performance in the FiberXers’ 110-94 conquest of the Meralco Bolts on Christmas Day.

Showcasing his all-around skills, Nocum notched 22 points, eight rebounds and four assists in Rain or Shine’s 122-106 rout of Blackwater.

Clarito, the PBA’s Most Improved Player in 2023, also provides energy and firepower for Rain or Shine.

Tolentino, now a member of the Gilas Pilipinas pool, chalked 22 points, eight rebounds and four assists in pacesetting NorthPort’s 105-104 squeaker over San Miguel.

It’s hardly surprising for Tolentino to do so as he sizzled for 51 points in NorthPort’s 135-109 demolition of Converge last August in the Governor’s Cup, the last local player to reach the 50-point plateau in six years.