San Juan Knights made life very easy for themselves on Wednesday, beating Paranaque Patriots 145 to 72 in the MPBL. The final score tells you everything you need to know about a one-sided affair at the home court. Knights took control early and never looked back, while Patriots found themselves chasing shadows from the opening tip-off.
And here's the thing about a seventy-three-point margin — it doesn't happen by accident. Knights kept knocking on the door in the first quarter and then simply walked through it. Patriots were left flat-footed for most of the contest, unable to string together anything resembling a coherent defensive shape. By then, the game was already beyond doubt.
Patriots sit fourteen in the table after twenty-one games, with just two victories to their name. To be fair, their recent run has been brutal: four losses in five outings, including a 130-point hammering by Zamboanga Sikat back in July. They picked up one win last week against Basilan Steel, but that feels like a small consolation when you look at the bigger picture.
Knights, meanwhile, are second after sixteen matches with fifteen wins and a single defeat. Their recent form reads like a masterclass in consistency — they beat Minodoro Tamaraus 74 to 62, held their nerve against Batangas City, and then bounced back with two straight victories. The away end never stopped once they found their rhythm.
The gap between these two sides has never looked wider. Knights are closing in on a top-two finish with room to breathe, while Patriots are running out of games to salvage something from the season. The table tells a story that neither side needs to spell out.