Mindoro player suffers broken jaw as violence mars MPBL match

Sports

NO place in basketball.

An ugly incident marred the Mindoro Tamaraws-GenSan Warriors match in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) on Monday, August 11, at the Batangas City Coliseum.

The dark moment that happened at the 7:33 mark of the third quarter saw GenSan’s big man Michole Sorela decked Mindoro’s Jonas Tibayan with a wicked punch.

Video footage of the incident has gone viral online.

In the video, the two players were seen positioning at the key hole. As he tried to establish position, Sorela threw a right punch that landed squarely on the jaw of the unsuspecting Tibayan.

Grimacing in pain, Tibayan laid on the floor for about five minutes with a bloodied mouth. He was rushed to a hospital after suffering a concussion, broken jaw, and a busted lip.

Sorela was ejected for the violent conduct.

Mindoro eventually won, 76-72, to hike its record to 13-10 (win-loss) in the South Division.

General Santos dropped to 13-9.

Former pro Bambam Gamalinda topped Mindoro with 21 points and seven rebounds, while Ino Comboy and Joseph Sedurifa contributed 16 and 12 points, respectively.

Kyle Tolentino paced the Warriors with 21 points and 10 rebounds.(CCM)