The 2018–19 MPBL season, also known as the MPBL Datu Cup, was the second season of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League. The regular season began on June 12, 2018 with the opening ceremonies Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City, and ended on March 11, 2019. The league also held its first ever All-Star Game at the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay on March 2, 2019. The playoffs then began on March 12, 2019 and ended on April 25, 2019 when the San Juan Knights defeated the Davao Occidental Tigers in five games in the 2019 MPBL finals.
This season saw sixteen expansion teams, nearly tripling its size from 10 to 26 teams. It also marked the league's national expansion, with five of those teams coming from Visayas and Mindanao. This resulted in the league dividing into the North and South Divisions, although this only affected playoff seeding and not the overall format of the season, with the playoffs itself expanding to sixteen teams, eight per division.
Teams
Expansion After a successful inaugural season, sixteen teams joined the league, its biggest expansion to date, bringing the a total of 26 teams. Metro Manila is the region with the most expansion teams at seven, those being the Makati Skyscrapers, Mandaluyong El Tigre, Manila Stars, Marikina Shoemasters, Pasay Voyagers, Pasig Pirates, and San Juan Knights. The Pampanga Lanterns joined from Central Luzon while the Bacoor City Strikers, Laguna Heroes, and Rizal Golden Coolers, joined from Calabarzon.
As part of the league's national expansion, the five remaining expansion teams came from either Visayas or Mindanao. The Cebu City Sharks from Central Visayas are the only expansion team from Visayas. The four teams from Mindanao are the Zamboanga Valientes representing the Zamboanga Peninsula, the Davao Occidental Tigers from the Davao Region, the GenSan Warriors from Soccsksargen, and the Basilan Steel from the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (which later became Bangsamoro).
Mid-season, the MPBL side of the Zamboanga Valientes was relaunched and became the Zamboanga Family's Brand Sardines following undisclosed management issues.
Introduction of divisions Due to the much bigger size of the league, divisions were introduced to divide the teams into the North and South Divisions. Teams still play a single round-robin tournament as part of the regular season, but the playoff format was changed to accommodate the new divisions. The top eight teams from each division would advance to an expanded playoff tournament. Similar to the National Basketball Association (NBA), the champions from each division would face once another in what is dubbed the "national finals".
Arenas
Expansion team New arena
Team Arena CapacityNorth Division Bataan Risers Bataan People's Center 4,000 Bulacan Kuyas Baliwag Star Arena 5,000 Bulacan Capitol Gymnasium 5,000 Caloocan Supremos Caloocan Sports Complex 3,000 Makati Super Crunch Ynares Sports Arena 3,000 Mandaluyong El Tigre Jose Rizal University Gymnasium 1,000 Ynares Sports Arena 3,000 Manila Stars San Andres Sports Complex 3,000 Navotas Clutch Navotas Sports Complex 1,000 Pampanga Lanterns AUF Sports and Cultural Center 3,000 Pasay Voyagers Cuneta Astrodome 12,000 Pasig Pirates Pasig Sports Center 2,500 Quezon City Capitals Blue Eagle Gym 7,500 Henry Noble Gymnasium 980 JCSGO Seed Dome 1,000 San Juan Knights Filoil Flying V Centre 5,500 Valenzuela Classic Valenzuela Astrodome 3,000South Division Bacoor City Strikers Strike Gymansium 1,500 Basilan Steel Lamitan Capitol Gymansium 3,000 Batangas City Athletics Batangas City Sports Coliseum 4,000 Batangas State University Gymnasium 2,500 De La Salle Lipa SENTRUM 1,000 Cebu City Sharks USJ–R Basak Coliseum 4,000 Hoops Dome 6,500 Davao Occidental Tigers USeP Gymnasium and Cultural Center 6,000 Rizal Memorial Colleges Gymnasium 2,000 GenSan Warriors Lagao Gymnasium 6,000 Imus Bandera Imus City Sports Complex 1,000 Laguna Heroes Alonte Sports Arena 6,500 Marikina Shoemasters Marist School Gymnasium 2,500 Muntinlupa Cagers Muntinlupa Sports Center 3,000 Parañaque Patriots Olivarez College Gymnasium 3,500 Rizal Crusaders Ynares Center 7,400 Zamboanga Family's Brand Sardines Mayor Vitaliano D. Agan Coliseum 12,000Neutral Smart Araneta Coliseum 25,000 SM Mall of Asia Arena 15,000
Name changes The Bataan Defenders changed its name to Bataan Risers before the start of the season. The Makati Skyscrapers changed their team name to Makati Super Crunch in November 2018. The Valenzuela Classic its team name to Valenzuela Idol Cheesedogs in July 2018, but was later reverted back in November 2018. The Zamboanga Valientes changed its team name to Zamboanga Family's Brand Sardines in 2019.
Coaching changes Off-seasonTeamOutgoing coachIncoming coachBulacan KuyasChris BaluyotBritt ReromaNavotas ClutchElvis TolentinoRichie TiczonParañaque PatriotsAric del RosarioEric SamsonMid-seasonTeamOutgoing coachIncoming coachBasilan SteelJoseph RomarateJerson CabiltesCebu City SharksGilbert CastilloNorberto ManaliliImus BanderaJerry Codiñera Mike OrquillasMike Orquillas Noynoy FalcasantosLaguna HeroesAlex AngelesNath GregorioMandaluyong El TigreMac CuanArlene RodriguezMuntinlupa CagersAldrin Morante Aldin AyoAldin Ayo Jack AzcuetaNavotas ClutchRichie TiczonGabby SeverinoPampanga LanternsIsaiah DuenasAldrin MoranteBacoor StrikersBudds ReyesLeo IsaacPasig PiratesJames MachateRonjay EnrileParañaque PatriotsEric Samson Richie MelencioRichie Melencio Monel KallosValenzuela ClassicChris Gavina Eric SamsonEric Samson Juven FormacilZamboanga ValientesEdnie MoronesRaymund Valenzona
Roster regulation changes
To ensure that the league remains balanced, a new rule was added so that teams were limited to only one Filipino-foreigner per roster, that player must also not be taller than 6'4" (193 cm). The player is classified as Filipino-foreigner if the player is a Filipino of foreign descent, regardless of being a Philippine passport holder. The new rule, however, caused some criticism from fans and players alike.
Regular season
Format The 26 teams played in a single round-robin format, playing one game against all other teams in the league for a total of 25 games. In each gameday, a series of games is played in a designated home arena, with the home team usually playing in the final game.
The playoffs were expanded from eight teams to sixteen teams in this season. The top eight teams in each division advanced to a four-round, single-elimination playoffs, playing in best-of-three series in the first three rounds, and a best-of-five series in the national finals, with homecourt advantage alternating between the higher seeds of each series in the first two rounds.
Standings
North Division
South Division
Results
Not all games are in home–away format. Each team plays every team once. Number of asterisks after each score denotes number of overtimes played.
Playoffs
Teams in bold advanced to the next round. The numbers to the left of each team indicate the team's seeding in its division, and the numbers to the right indicate the number of games the team won in that round. Teams with home court advantage, the higher seeded team, are shown in italics.
First round In the first round, the first- and second-seeded teams host games 1 and 3 of its respective division, while the third- and fourth-seeded teams host game 2.
North Division first round
South Division first round
Division semifinals In the Division Semifinals, the highest seeded team hosts games 1 and 3, while the second-highest seeded team hosts game 2.
North Division semifinals
South Division semifinals Due to Davao Occidental advancing after game 2, Batangas City instead hosted game 3.
Division finals In the Division Finals, the higher-seeded team hosts games 1 and 3 in its respective division, while the lower-seeded team hosts game 2.
North Division finals
South Division finals
MPBL finals
In the MPBL finals, the higher-seeded team hosts games 1, 2, and 5, while the lower-seeded team hosts games 3 and 4.
Both teams finished the season 20–5, but the Davao Occidental Tigers held the homecourt advantage for the finals, as they have defeated San Juan in their regular season matchup, but the San Juan Knights eventually won the championship in 5 games.
All-Star Game
The 2019 MPBL All-Star Game was an exhibition game played on March 2, 2019. It was the inaugural edition of the MPBL All-Star Game, which took place at SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.
The South Division prevailed over the North Division with a score of 109–84. Jeff Viernes was declared the All-Star Game MVP.
Lineups
+ North All-Stars Pos Player TeamStarters Cedric Ablaza Makati Super Crunch Mark Andaya Pasig Pirates Mike Ayonayon San Juan Knights Gary David Bataan Risers Aris Dionisio Manila StarsReserves Gian Abrigo Mandaluyong El Tigre Jaypee Belencion Pasay Voyagers Chris Bitoon Manila Stars Jay Collado Quezon City Capitals Marlon Gomez Navotas Clutch Levi Hernandez Pampanga Lanterns Paulo Hubalde Valenzuela Classic Larry Rodriguez San Juan Knights Jay-R Taganas Bulacan Kuyas Almond Vosotros Caloocan SupremosHead coach: Jojo Lastimosa (Bataan Risers)
+ South All-Stars Pos Player TeamStarters Gerald Anderson Marikina Shoemasters Gab Banal Bacoor City Strikers Jhaymo Eguilos Batangas City Athletics Allan Mangahas Muntinlupa Cagers Mark Yee Davao Occidental TigersReserves Marco Balagtas Rizal Crusaders Patrick Cabahug Cebu City Sharks Cris Masaglang GenSan Warriors Paulo Castro Parañaque Patriots Reed Juntilla Zamboanga Family's Brand Sardines Michael Mabulac Laguna Heroes Ian Melencio Imus Bandera Leo Najorda Davao Occidental Tigers Jojo Tangkay Basilan Steel Jeff Viernes Batangas City AthleticsHead coach: Don Dulay (Davao Occidental)
Game
Pre-game events Before the game itself, multiple pre-game events were held. These include the Executives' Game, 2-Ball Challenge, Three-Point Shootout, and Slam Dunk Competition. The champions of these events are as follows: Executives' Game Champions: North Division Executives 2-Ball Challenge Champions: Pamboy Raymundo and Byron Villarias (Bataan Risers) Three-Point Shootout Champion: Gary David (Bataan Risers) Slam Dunk Competition Champion: David Carlos (Makati Super Crunch)
Statistics
Individual statistic leaders Category Player Team Statistic Points per game Almond Vosotros Caloocan Supremos 20.33 Total Rebounds per game JR Taganas Bulacan Kuyas 12.64 Assists per game Paolo Hubalde Valenzuela Classic 8.48 Steals per game Paolo Hubalde Valenzuela Classic 2.8 Blocks per game Aris Dionisio Manila Stars 2.17 Turnovers per game Bonbon Custodio Davao Occidental Tigers 4.4 Fouls per game Chad Alonzo Bacoor City Strikers 3.57 Minutes per game Paolo Castro Parañaque Patriots 33.58 FG% Art Patrick Aquino San Juan Knights 59.0% FT% Eric Dela Cuesta Rizal Crusaders 91.0% 3FG% Nico Abatayo Batangas City Athletics 67.0% Double-doubles Harold Miguel Arboleda Parañaque Patriots 7 Triple-doubles Gab Banal Bacoor Strikers 3
Individual game highs Category Player Team Statistic Points Leomer Losentes GenSan Warriors 41 Rebounds JR Taganas Bulacan Kuyas 26 Assists Allan Mangahas Muntinlupa Cagers 17 Steals Warren Ybanez Marikina Shoemasters 8 Blocks Eduardo Doroteo Pasig Pirates 7 Three-pointers Yves Sazon Marikina Shoemasters 7
Awards
Individual season awards Most of the league's individual awards made their debut this season, which were given out before game 4 of the 2019 national finals at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan. The Finals Most Valuable Player and Coach of the Year were given out at the conclusion of the series.