Magnolia Manhandles Terrafirma to Remain Unbeaten in PBA PHL Cup

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

The Magnolia Hotshots Chicken Timplados are off to one of their best starts in the PBA Philippine Cup after mauling the Terrafirma Dyip, 127-94, to maintain their untainted record on May 4, 2025, at the Ynares Center.

With another lopsided victory, the title-seeking Magnolia squad racked up their fifth consecutive win, recording their fourth dub with a double-digit winning margin.

The only close game that they had so far in the ongoing PBA PHL Cup was against the mighty San Miguel Beermen, where the clash went down to the wire, 98-95.

After that tightly contested win, the Chicken Timplados dominated the Phoenix Fuel Masters, 118-99, and held oozing momentum ahead of their collision against Terrafirma.

It was as if Magnolia was still in their practice facility as they made it rain from downtown to start the ball game with a quick sizable advantage.

Although Terrafirma was able to trim Magnolia’s 12-point lead after the first 12 minutes of action, the duo of Zavier Lucero and Paul Lee sparked the Chicken Timplados’ demoralizing 38-12 run that put them ahead by 18 points at the half.

Lucero kicked off Magnolia’s second-quarter surge with his second-chance efforts in the shaded lane, backstopped by Lee’s timely three-pointers that forced Terrafirma to call two emergency timeouts in a span of three minutes.

Aside from their amped up offensive avalanche, the Chicken Timplados also doubled their defensive effort, which saw Terrafirma’s scoring production decline from 27 points in the first quarter to just 12 in the next frame.

After Magnolia’s efficient two-way outing, everything just clicked from all cylinders, with the likes of Jerrick Ahanmisi, Jerom Lastimosa, and Joseph Eriobu joining the offensive party.

Terrafirma attempted to inch close and draw some momentum with their full-court defensive pressure at the start of the fourth but all their effort went to waste when the more experienced Magnolia just executed a three-man weave to break the press.

Lucero top-scored for the Chicken Timplados as the high-flying versatile forward powered his way to 17 points and nine rebounds.

Lee, who was quiet during their first four wins, finally became more assertive in scoring the leather and chipped in 13 markers built from two three-pointers.

“Yun naman yung system namin eh. We just try to go hard every time we step on the court, give our hundred percent,” said Magnolia head coach Chito Victolero after improving to 5-0 in the PBA PHL Cup.