2023–24 Meralco Bolts season

The 2023–24 Meralco Bolts season is the 13th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).

2023–24 Meralco Bolts season
Head coachLuigi Trillo
General ManagerPaolo Trillo
Owner(s)Manila Electric Company
(an MVP group subsidiary)
Commissioner's Cup results
Record8–3 (72.7%)
Place5th
Playoff finishQuarterfinalist (lost to Phoenix Super LPG with twice-to-win disadvantage)
Philippine Cup results
Record6–5 (54.5%)
Place3rd
Playoff finishChampions (Defeated San Miguel, 4–2)
Meralco Bolts seasons

Key dates

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Draft picks

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Round Pick Player Position Place of birth College
1 8 Brandon Bates C   Australia De La Salle
3 32 Jolo Mendoza G   Philippines Ateneo
4 43 Zach Huang F   Philippines UST
5 54 Jessie Sumoda C   Philippines San Sebastian
6 62 Shean Jackson G   USA Cheyenne HS

Roster

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2023–24 Meralco Bolts roster
Players Coaches
Pos. # POB Name Height Weight DOB (YYYY–MM–DD) From
G 1   Black, Aaron 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1996–12–03 Ateneo
G 4   Dario, Diego 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) 145 lb (66 kg) 1997–01–06 UP Diliman
G 6   Banchero, Chris 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 175 lb (79 kg) 1989–01–24 Seattle Pacific
F 7   Hodge, Cliff 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) 1988–02–03 Hawaii Pacific
G 10   Mendoza, Jolo (R) 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 1998–01–31 Ateneo
G/F 11   Newsome, Chris 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) 1990–07–25 Ateneo
G 17   Caram, Anjo 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) 159 lb (72 kg) 1991–01–14 San Beda
F 19   Quinto, Bong 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 1994–12–15 Letran
F/C 20   Almazan, Raymond (C) 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 194 lb (88 kg) 1989–08–02 Letran
F 22   Maliksi, Allein 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) 1987–09–18 UST
F 23   Pasaol, Alvin 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 200 lb (91 kg) 1995–05–06 UE
F 24   Jose, Raymar 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1992–08–06 Far Eastern
F 27   Rios, Jansen 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) 1991–10–28 Adamson
F/C 29   Torres, Norbert 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 250 lb (113 kg) 1990–01–12 De La Salle
F/C 32   Pascual, Kyle 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) 1990–04–13 San Beda
C 33   Bates, Brandon (R) 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 231 lb (105 kg) De La Salle
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Team manager



Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (CI) Commissioner's Cup Import
  • (GI) Governors' Cup Import
  • (EI) EASL Import
  • (DP) Unsigned draft pick
  • (FA) Free agent
  • (IN) Inactive
  • (S) Suspended
  • (R) Rookie
  •   Injured

Roster


Preseason

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PBA on Tour

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Game log

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2023 PBA on Tour game log
Total: 7–4
May: 1–1
Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Record
1 May 24 NorthPort W 97–89 Allein Maliksi (21) Raymar Jose (12) Alvin Pasaol (7) Ynares Sports Arena 1–0
2 May 28 Phoenix Super LPG L 93–100 Anjo Caram (24) Jose, Torres (9) Bong Quinto (11) Ynares Sports Arena 1–1
June: 3–1
Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Record
3 June 4 Converge W 96–88 Allein Maliksi (16) Raymond Almazan (14) Bong Quinto (5) Ynares Center 2–1
4 June 10 San Miguel W 92–89 Allein Maliksi (21) Raymond Almazan (14) Anjo Caram (7) Tiaong Convention Center 3–1
5 June 18 Terrafirma L 102–107 Allein Maliksi (33) Cliff Hodge (15) Bong Quinto (10) Ynares Sports Arena 3–2
6 June 28 TNT W 108–90 Allein Maliksi (28) Cliff Hodge (13) Bong Quinto (7) Ynares Sports Arena 4–2
July: 3–2
Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Record
7 July 2 Magnolia L 101–121 Diego Dario (22) Bong Quinto (9) Allein Maliksi (7) Filoil EcoOil Centre 4–3
8 July 5 Barangay Ginebra W 106–93 Allein Maliksi (23) Raymond Almazan (12) Cliff Hodge (6) Quadricentennial Pavilion 5–3
9 July 12 NLEX W 96–83 Alvin Pasaol (25) Raymond Almazan (8) Aaron Black (9) Ynares Sports Arena 6–3
10 July 14 Blackwater L 82–89 Almazan, Quinto (18) Raymond Almazan (14) Diego Dario (4) Ynares Sports Arena 6–4
11 July 28 Rain or Shine W 103–95 Raymar Jose (22) Raymar Jose (18) Aaron Black (10) Ynares Sports Arena 7–4

MassKara Festival exhibition

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Game log

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2023 PBA MassKara Festival exhibition game log
Total: 0–1
October: 0–1
Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Record
1 October 19 Rain or Shine L 81–94 Diego Dario (20) Raymar Jose (11) Black, Dario, Pasaol (3) La Salle Coliseum 0–1

Commissioner's Cup

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Eliminations

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Standings

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Pos Team W L PCT GB Qualification
1 Magnolia Chicken Timplados Hotshots 9 2 .818 Twice-to-beat in quarterfinals
2 San Miguel Beermen 8 3 .727[a] 1
3 Barangay Ginebra San Miguel 8 3 .727[a] 1
4 Phoenix Super LPG Fuel Masters 8 3 .727[a] 1
5 Meralco Bolts 8 3 .727[a] 1 Twice-to-win in quarterfinals
6 NorthPort Batang Pier 6 5 .545[b] 3
7 Rain or Shine Elasto Painters 6 5 .545[b] 3
8 TNT Tropang Giga 5 6 .455 4
9 NLEX Road Warriors 4 7 .364 5
10 Terrafirma Dyip 2 9 .182 7
11 Blackwater Bossing 1 10 .091[c] 8
12 Converge FiberXers 1 10 .091[c] 8
Source: PBA.ph
Rules for classification: 1) winning percentage; 2) if two teams are tied, head-to-head record; if three or more teams are tied, head-to-head goal average (quotient); if tied for 8th, one-game playoff; 3) overall quotient; 4) coin toss[2]
Notes:
  1. ^ a b c d Head-to-head quotient: San Miguel 1.17, Barangay Ginebra 0.99, Phoenix Super LPG 0.98, Meralco 0.89
  2. ^ a b Head-to-head record: NorthPort 1–0 Rain or Shine
  3. ^ a b Head-to-head record: Blackwater 1–0 Converge

Game log

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2023–24 PBA Commissioner's Cup game log
Total: 8–3
November: 3–1
Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Record
1 November 8 Rain or Shine W 107–102 Suleiman Braimoh (34) Suleiman Braimoh (14) Aaron Black (4) PhilSports Arena 1–0
2 November 11 Blackwater W 91–84 Suleiman Braimoh (40) Suleiman Braimoh (16) Chris Newsome (6) Ynares Center 2–0
3 November 19 San Miguel L 83–93 Chris Newsome (22) Suleiman Braimoh (12) Chris Newsome (6) Smart Araneta Coliseum 2–1
4 November 26 TNT W 109–95 Suleiman Braimoh (37) Raymond Almazan (11) Chris Newsome (5) PhilSports Arena 3–1
December: 3–1
Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Record
5 December 3 NLEX W 97–94 Suleiman Braimoh (38) Almazan, Braimoh (8) Braimoh, Quinto (4) PhilSports Arena 4–1
6 December 10 NorthPort W 125–99 Zach Lofton (54) Raymond Almazan (15) Diego Dario (6) PhilSports Arena 5–1
7 December 17 Converge W 105–99 Zach Lofton (30) Chris Newsome (10) Cliff Hodge (7) Ynares Center 6–1
8 December 22 Barangay Ginebra L 96–110 Zach Lofton (23) Cliff Hodge (8) Zach Lofton (7) Smart Araneta Coliseum 6–2
January: 2–1
Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Record
9 January 6 Magnolia W 85–80 Shonn Miller (33) Shonn Miller (22) Banchero, Newsome (4) University of San Agustin Gym 7–2
10 January 10 Phoenix Super LPG L 83–93 Shonn Miller (19) Shonn Miller (9) Chris Newsome (7) Smart Araneta Coliseum 7–3
11 January 12 Terrafirma W 109–102 Shonn Miller (29) Shonn Miller (21) Bong Quinto (9) Smart Araneta Coliseum 8–3

Playoffs

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Bracket

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QuarterfinalsSemifinals
(best-of-5)
Finals
(best-of-7)
(#1 twice-to-beat)
1Magnolia109
8TNT94
1Magnolia3
(#4 twice-to-beat)
4Phoenix Super LPG1
4Phoenix Super LPG10788
5Meralco116***84
1Magnolia2
(#2 twice-to-beat)
2San Miguel4
2San Miguel127
7Rain or Shine122
2San Miguel3
(#3 twice-to-beat)
3Barangay Ginebra0
3Barangay Ginebra106
6NorthPort93

*Game went into overtime

Game log

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2023–24 PBA Commissioner's Cup playoffs game log
Total: 1–1
Quarterfinals: 1–1
Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Series
1 January 17 Phoenix Super LPG W 116–107 (3OT) Cliff Hodge (20) Shonn Miller (20) Newsome, Quinto (4) PhilSports Arena 1–0
2 January 21 Phoenix Super LPG L 84–88 Hodge, Maliksi, Newsome (15) Shonn Miller (12) Miller, Newsome (6) SM Mall of Asia Arena 1–1

Philippine Cup

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Eliminations

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Standings

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Pos Team W L PCT GB Qualification
1 San Miguel Beermen 10 1 .909 Twice-to-beat in the quarterfinals
2 Barangay Ginebra San Miguel 7 4 .636 3
3 Meralco Bolts 6 5 .545[a] 4 Best-of-three quarterfinals
4 TNT Tropang Giga 6 5 .545[a] 4
5 Rain or Shine Elasto Painters 6 5 .545[a] 4
6 NLEX Road Warriors 6 5 .545[a] 4
7 Magnolia Chicken Timplados Hotshots 6 5 .545[a] 4 Twice-to-win in the quarterfinals
8 Terrafirma Dyip 5 6 .455[b] 5
9 NorthPort Batang Pier 5 6 .455[b] 5
10 Blackwater Bossing 4 7 .364 6
11 Phoenix Fuel Masters 3 8 .273 7
12 Converge FiberXers 2 9 .182 8
Source: PBA.ph
Rules for classification: 1) winning percentage; 2) if two teams are tied, head-to-head record; if three or more teams are tied, head-to-head goal average (quotient); if tied for 8th, one-game playoff; 3) overall quotient; 4) coin toss[3]
Notes:
  1. ^ a b c d e Head-to-head quotient: Meralco 1.06, TNT 1.03, Rain or Shine 1.01, NLEX 0.99, Magnolia 0.90
  2. ^ a b Terrafirma won the eighth seed playoff over NorthPort (104–96).

Game log

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2024 PBA Philippine Cup game log
Total: 6–5
February: 0–1
Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Record
1 February 28 Blackwater L 93–96 Allein Maliksi (27) Chris Newsome (7) Banchero, Newsome (6) Ynares Center 0–1
March: 2–2
Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Record
2 March 2 Rain or Shine W 121–117 (OT) Allein Maliksi (26) Chris Newsome (11) Bong Quinto (6) Smart Araneta Coliseum 1–1
3 March 6 NLEX L 96–99 Chris Newsome (22) Chris Newsome (8) Chris Newsome (4) Smart Araneta Coliseum 1–2
4 March 10 NorthPort L 85–90 Aaron Black (18) Cliff Hodge (11) Chris Banchero (5) Smart Araneta Coliseum 1–3
5 March 15 Barangay Ginebra W 91–73 Allein Maliksi (25) Almazan, Black, Hodge (7) Chris Newsome (4) Smart Araneta Coliseum 2–3
All-Star Break
April: 3–2
Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Record
6 April 3 Terrafirma W 86–83 Bong Quinto (18) Chris Newsome (8) Chris Newsome (8) Smart Araneta Coliseum 3–3
7 April 7 TNT L 90–92 Black, Hodge (16) Aaron Black (8) Chris Newsome (5) Ninoy Aquino Stadium 3–4
8 April 21 Converge L 99–104 Chris Newsome (25) Cliff Hodge (9) Aaron Black (6) PhilSports Arena 3–5
9 April 26 Phoenix W 82–76 Aaron Black (18) Bates, Hodge (12) Black, Quinto (4) Smart Araneta Coliseum 4–5
10 April 28 Magnolia W 74–51 Almazan, Newsome (12) Raymond Almazan (11) Chris Newsome (7) PhilSports Arena 5–5
May: 1–0
Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Record
11 May 4 San Miguel W 95–92 Cliff Hodge (20) Cliff Hodge (13) Chris Newsome (6) Batangas City Sports Center 6–5

Playoffs

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Bracket

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QuarterfinalsSemifinals
(best-of-7)
Finals
(best-of-7)
(#1 twice-to-beat)
1San Miguel95110
8Terrafirma10691
1San Miguel4
(best-of-3)
5Rain or Shine0
4TNT1
5Rain or Shine2
1San Miguel2
(#2 twice-to-beat)
3Meralco4
2Barangay Ginebra99
7Magnolia77
2Barangay Ginebra3
(best-of-3)
3Meralco4
3Meralco2
6NLEX0

Game log

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2024 PBA Philippine Cup playoffs game log
Total: 10–5
Quarterfinals: 2–0
Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Series
1 May 8 NLEX W 97–93 Allein Maliksi (22) Hodge, Newsome (7) Chris Newsome (6) Smart Araneta Coliseum 1–0
2 May 10 NLEX W 100–81 Chris Banchero (23) Chris Newsome (9) Chris Banchero (6) Rizal Memorial Coliseum 2–0
Semifinals: 4–3
Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Series
1 May 17 Barangay Ginebra L 88–92 Chris Newsome (21) Chris Newsome (13) Chris Banchero (8) Mall of Asia Arena 0–1
2 May 19 Barangay Ginebra W 103–91 Allein Maliksi (25) Cliff Hodge (10) Caram, Hodge, Newsome (3) Mall of Asia Arena 1–1
3 May 22 Barangay Ginebra W 87–80 Allein Maliksi (16) Almazan, Bates (9) Chris Newsome (6) Dasmariñas Arena 2–1
4 May 24 Barangay Ginebra L 71–90 Banchero, Maliksi (14) Allein Maliksi (6) Chris Banchero (3) Mall of Asia Arena 2–2
5 May 26 Barangay Ginebra L 84–89 Chris Banchero (18) Cliff Hodge (8) Chris Banchero (6) Mall of Asia Arena 2–3
6 May 29 Barangay Ginebra W 86–81 Bong Quinto (23) Raymond Almazan (11) Chris Banchero (8) Smart Araneta Coliseum 3–3
7 May 31 Barangay Ginebra W 78–69 Chris Banchero (24) Brandon Bates (13) Chris Newsome (6) FPJ Arena 4–3
Finals: 4–2
Game Date Opponent Score High points High rebounds High assists Location
Attendance
Series
1 June 5 San Miguel W 93–86 Banchero, Newsome (18) Cliff Hodge (15) Banchero, Newsome (5) Smart Araneta Coliseum 1–0
2 June 7 San Miguel L 94–95 Cliff Hodge (25) Bates, Hodge (9) Chris Newsome (5) Smart Araneta Coliseum 1–1
3 June 9 San Miguel W 93–89 Chris Newsome (26) Almazan, Hodge (13) Chris Banchero (6) Smart Araneta Coliseum 2–1
4 June 12 San Miguel L 101–111 Chris Newsome (40) Cliff Hodge (10) Chris Newsome (4) Smart Araneta Coliseum 2–2
5 June 14 San Miguel W 92–88 Maliksi, Newsome (22) Cliff Hodge (9) Chris Newsome (5) Smart Araneta Coliseum 3–2
6 June 16 San Miguel W 80–78 Chris Newsome (15) Raymond Almazan (10) Chris Banchero (8) Smart Araneta Coliseum 4–2

East Asia Super League

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Group stage

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Standings

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Pos Team Pld W L PF PA PD Qualification
1   Seoul SK Knights 6 4[a] 2 475 438 +37 Semifinals
2   New Taipei Kings 6 4[a] 2 467 483 −16
3   Ryukyu Golden Kings 6 3 3 479 453 +26
4   Meralco Bolts 6 1 5 469 516 −47
Source: EASL
Notes:
  1. ^ a b Seoul SK Knights 161–147 New Taipei Kings

Game log

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15 November 2023 Ryukyu Golden Kings   89–61   Meralco Bolts Okinawa
19:00 (JST) Scoring by quarter: 17–21, 31–13, 21–13, 20–14
Pts: Imamura 19
Rebs: Durham 9
Asts: Durham 6
Boxscore Pts: Newsome 11
Rebs: Ibeh 9
Asts: Caram 4
Arena: Okinawa Arena
Attendance: 6,120
29 November 2023 New Taipei Kings   97–92   Meralco Bolts New Taipei City
19:00 (TST) Scoring by quarter: 25–30, 20–18, 20–18, 32–26
Pts: Je. Lin 25
Rebs: Anigwe 14
Asts: Je. Lin 7
Boxscore Pts: Lofton 35
Rebs: Ibeh, Newsome 6
Asts: Newsome 4
Arena: Xinzhuang Gymnasium
13 December 2023 Meralco Bolts   97–880(OT)   Ryukyu Golden Kings Macau, China
19:00 (CST) Scoring by quarter: 17–21, 21–16, 19–20, 23–23, Overtime: 17–8
Pts: Lofton 35
Rebs: Ibeh 12
Asts: three players 3
Boxscore Pts: Law 27
Rebs: Cooley 13
Asts: Law 6
Arena: Studio City Event Center
27 December 2023 Meralco Bolts   80–81   Seoul SK Knights Pasig
19:00 (PST) Scoring by quarter: 20–20, 13–25, 23–19, 24–17
Pts: Lofton 32
Rebs: Ibeh 11
Asts: Newsome 6
Boxscore Pts: Warney 31
Rebs: Williams 8
Asts: Warney 6
Arena: PhilSports Arena
3 January 2024 Meralco Bolts   77–89   New Taipei Kings Pasig
19:00 (PST) Scoring by quarter: 21–21, 26–21, 11–24, 77–89
Pts: Lofton 20
Rebs: Ibeh 7
Asts: Lofton 4
Boxscore Pts: Je. Lin 23
Rebs: Anigwe, Je. Lin 10
Asts: Je. Lin, Manigault 4
Arena: PhilSports Arena
7 February 2024 Seoul SK Knights   72–62   Meralco Bolts Seoul
19:00 (KST) Scoring by quarter: 14–13, 18–17, 17–18, 23–14
Pts: Williams 25
Rebs: Williams 19
Asts: Choi W. 14
Boxscore Pts: Miller 23
Rebs: Tew 21
Asts: three players 3
Arena: Jamsil Students' Gymnasium

Transactions

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Subtractions

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Player Number Position Reason New team
Nonoy Baclao[4] 50, 97 Center / Power forward End of contract San Miguel Beermen

Trades

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Pre-season

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May
May 18, 2023[5] To Meralco
Norbert Torres
To Rain or Shine
Mac Belo

Recruited imports

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Tournament Name Debuted Last game Record
Commissioner's Cup Suleiman Braimoh November 8, 2023 (vs. Rain or Shine) December 3, 2023 (vs. NLEX) 4–1
Zach Lofton December 10, 2023 (vs. NorthPort) December 22, 2023 (vs. Barangay Ginebra) 2–1
Shonn Miller January 6, 2024 (vs. Magnolia) January 21, 2024 (vs. Phoenix Super LPG) 3–2

Awards

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Recipient Award Date awarded
Chris Newsome 2024 PBA Philippine Cup Finals Most Valuable Player June 16, 2024[6]
Honors
Chris Newsome 2023–24 PBA Mythical First Team August 18, 2024[7]
2023–24 PBA All-Defensive Team
Cliff Hodge 2023–24 PBA Mythical Second Team
2023–24 PBA All-Defensive Team

References

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  1. ^ [1], PBA.ph, September 17, 2023
  2. ^ "ALL ABOUT THE PBA QUOTIENT". December 10, 2012.
  3. ^ "ALL ABOUT THE PBA QUOTIENT". December 10, 2012.
  4. ^ Ramos, Gerry. "Noy Baclao finds a new home at SMB after signing at end of PBA On Tour". Spin.ph. Retrieved September 22, 2023.
  5. ^ "Meralco trades Mac Belo to Rain or Shine for Norbert Torres". Spin.ph. Retrieved September 22, 2023.
  6. ^ "Bolts end 14 years of fruitless campaigns, rule Season 48 Philippine Cup". PBA.ph. June 16, 2024. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
  7. ^ "Legend lives on as Fajardo wins record 8th MVP award". PBA.ph. August 18, 2024. Retrieved August 19, 2024.