Almost but not quite. This was the fate that befell the M. Lhuillier Kwarta Padala-Cebu Niños as they were trounced by bitter rivals Misamis Oriental Meteors, 61-76, for the last leg title in the SMC Liga Pilipinas late Saturday night at the Xavier University gym.
Third place was won by the league-leading Mandaue-Cebu Landmasters/RDAK as they outlasted the GenSan-MP Warriors, 72-67, in another overtime encounter.
Mandaue picked up a total of five points to hike their Liga-best total to 44 points. The Warriors added one more point and tied them with the idle Ilocos Sur CS Tigers at 15 points each. However, the MP Warriors will play in the Super Leg because of their superior quotient.
Already safe into the Super Leg, the Meteors earned the maximum 15 points for their four-game sweep while the Niños tallied seven points. Completing the five-team Super Leg are the Laguna Golden Lions, the lone entry from Luzon.
It was sweet victory for the Meteors as they finally managed to capture a leg championship in front of their adoring fans for the first time in five attempts.
To add to the celebration, it was announced that the hosting rights of the Super Leg that will determine the next National Champion has been awarded to the Meteors. The Super Leg will be held from July 12 to 17.
Doing the most damage was former Niños forward Ron Capati as he joined forces with Dino Daa to score 17 of the Meteors’ 25 points in the fourth period. That barrage helped the Meteors break the game wide open in their favor and never looked back until the final buzzer. Capati finished with 18 points and eight rebounds while leg MVP Egay Billones added 13.