Imus-Buracai de Laiya closed in on one of the quarterfinals slots in Pool D after holding off Mindoro-EOG Burlington, 77-70, in a battle of unbeaten teams in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) Invitational Thursday at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.

It was a morale-boosting win for Imus, whose head coach Manny Torralba fainted midway through the fourth quarter after an argument with the referees.

"Bumaba 'yung sugar niya, si Coach Manny [Torralba]. Ganun talaga, too much pressure at merong nakain na hindi maganda kaya he needs to rest," said assistant coach Bang Tumapat, a childhood friend of Torralba.

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"Sinensyasan niya lang ako na take over kaya tinapos ko lang 'yung game," he added.

Leo Najorda and Ian Melencio joined forces for Imus with the former pouring 21 points and five rebounds and the latter supplying 20 points and five rebounds.

The league's medical staff said Torralba experienced high blood pressure while also forgetting his insulin maintenance prior to the match. The veteran coach remained conscious and was brought to San Juan de Dios Educational Foundation Inc. Hospital.

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In the other games, Bacolod vented its ire on Caloocan with an 85-65 romp, while Nueva Ecija handed Val City-MJAS Zenith a 23-point beating, 100-77.

Nhomer Gonzales finished with 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting in the field along with 14 rebounds and five blocks for Bacolod, who came off a deflating 62-88 loss versus Iloilo.

Christopher Bitoon, on the other hand, led Nueva Ecija's balanced offensive attack with 16 points laced with five rebounds, three assists, and three steals.