PHL’s Falcons AP Bren beaten by Malaysia’s Selangor Red Giants in Southeast Asia Cup
PHILIPPINE team Falcons AP Bren fell prey to Malaysia’s Selangor Red Giants, 3-4, to settle for a runner-up finish in the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) Southeast Asia Cup (MSC) at the Esports World Cup over the weekend in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
AP Bren, the reigning M5 World Champion, erased a 2-3 deficit to force a clincher in the thrilling best-of-seven duel only to fold down the stretch to the rising Malaysian squad led by a bevy of Filipino imports.
It’s the first-ever MLBB international title for Malaysia with Filipino aces John “Innocent” Banal and Mark “Kramm” Rusiana making their mark under the guidance of Pinoy mentor Michael “Arcadia” Bocado.
The Philippines had dominated the regional tournament with three titles in the seven editions. Coincidentally, AP Bren was not among the previous Philippine champions albeit it had stamped its class in the world stage with two titles in the M2 and M5.
Selangor Red Giants were coming off a championship run in the MLBB Pro League (MPL) Malaysia Season 13 before claiming the scalp of no less than the powerhouse AP Bren that just ruled the M5 World Championship last December.
Ace player Muhammad Haqqullah “Sekysss” Ahmad Shahrul Zaman was named the Finals MVP with solid support from compatriots Hazziq “Stormie” Rizwan and Muhammad Qayyum Ariffin Bin “Yums” Mohd Suhairi.
Selangor pocketed a grand prize of $1,000,000 as the majority of the whopping $3-million prize pool.
David Charles “FlapTzy” Canon, Marco “Super Marco” Requitano, Michael “KyleTzy” Sayson, Vincent Joseph “Pandora” Unigo, Angelo Kyle “Pheww” Arcangel and Rowgien “Owgen” Unigo made up the AP Bren squad that took home a $500,000 prize.
AP Bren went undefeated throughout the tournament, including a 3-1 semifinal win against fellow Filipino squad Team Liquid ECHO for a sweet vengeance after losing to the latter in the MPL Philippines Season 13 finals last summer. — John Bryan Ulanday