PALAYAN City — Home sweet home for defending champion Nueva Ecija Rice Vanguards.

Former PBA player Jonathan Uyloan made sure the Rice Vanguards — and the thousands of wildly-cheering and highly-appreciative crowd — would come home happy and satisfied after the game.

Uyloan played another superb game as Nueva Ecija defeated Pasay, 88-79, to close out their elimination round campaign in the OKBet-Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) the same way they wanted it — in style.

Uyloan, the 6-0 Filipino-Amercian shooting guard who played for four PBA teams before finding a home in Nueva Ecija, scattered a team-high 18 points on 7-of-10 shooting and five rebounds in 18 minutes to power the Rice Vanguards of well-known sports patron Bong Cuevas and coach Jerson Cabiltes to a smashing come-from-behind victory over the Voyagers at the Nueva Ecija Coliseum.

With the win, Nueva Ecija secured the No. 2 spot in the North division with a 23-5 win-loss record in the tough 29-team tournament.

“It was great. We really need the momentum going to the playoffs. Pasay and a lot of teams in the North are really strong, so it’s a good win for us,” said Uyloan, a two-time MPBL champion.

“There’s really a lot of pressure ever since game one in the eliminations, but boss Bong (Cuevas) and coach Jerson (Cabiltes) always encourage us and tell us how difficult it is to defend a title. God willing, we could defend it for Nueva Ecija,” added Uyloan, the lone double-digit scorer for the Rice Vanguards in the tightly-fought contest.

Uyloan also expressed his gratitude to the fans and thanked team management for their support.

“The whole team would like to thank all the fans and of course, boss Bong Cuevas and the Cuevas family for their continued support.”

But it was a balanced scoring attack for Nueva Ecija.

Jay Collado, Michael Mabulac, Stephen Siruma, Kris Harvey Pagsanjan and Pamboy Raymundo added eight points apiece for the Rice Vanguards.

Roi Sumang contributed with six points, and Chris Bitoon and Philip Manalang had five points each.

“We played good defense because we forced a lot of turnovers during the run in the fourth quarter,” Cabiltes, who shrugged off some physical encounters with the Voyagers.

“Both sides are setting the tone for the playoffs. We just gonna be ready for war,” he added.

Antonio Jeffrey Coronel and Alejandro Antonio Inigo had 15 points each for the Voyagers, who ended up with a 17-11 card.

After trailing in double figures most of the way and 62-63 at the end of third quarter, the Rice Vanguards found their rhythm in the fourth period as they quickly scored a 9-2 run triggered by Raymundo’s three-pointer to take control, 71-65 with 8:23 minutes remaining.

The scores:

Nueva Ecija (88) – Uyloan 18, Raymundo 8, Mabulac 8, Collado 8, Siruma 8, Pagsanjan 8, Sumang 6, Manalang 5, Bitoon 5, Balucanag 4, Taganas 4, Catacutan 3, Palma 3, Juico 0
Pasay (79) – Inigo 15, Coronel 15, Gomez 11, Reverente 10, Diputado 7, Serrano 6, Chan 5, Victoria 5, Hilario 4, Sienes 1, Bienes 0, Aguirre 0
Quarterscores: 17-23, 40-41, 62-63, 88-79.