The Meycauayan Marilao Gems are a Philippine professional basketball team based in the southern portion of Bulacan, representing both Meycauayan and Marilao. The team competes in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) as a member of the North Division. The team plays their home games at San Jose del Monte Sports Complex.
The team was originally known as the Muntinlupa Cagers as one of the league's founding teams, first established for the 2018 season, where they also made their only finals appearance to date. The team also took part in FilBasket.
In 2026, new ownership acquired the franchise and brought the team to southern Bulacan ahead of the 2026 season, therefore making them the first team in the league to relocate. The Gems became the second team to represent Bulacan, after the Bulacan Kuyas.
History
Muntinlupa Cagers The Muntinlupa Cagers were founded in 2018 as one of the MPBL's ten charter teams for the 2018 season. The Cagers experienced immediate success, finishing with a 6–3 record. Muntinlupa claimed the third seed and first swept Navotas in the Quarterfinals. They then had the Parañaque Patriots, who were coming off an upset against second-seeded Bulacan. Parañaque won the first game of the series, but Muntinlupa, who were led by the likes Chito Jaime, Felix Apreku, and Allan Mangahas, took the next two games to advance to the 2018 MPBL finals against the Batangas City Athletics. Muntinlupa went on to lose the series in four games, making Batangas City the league's inaugural champions.
Muntinlupa continued winning in the 2018–19 season, keeping the same core players and once again claiming third seed in the South Division with a 15–10 record. Their playoff run was cut short, however, as the Cagers lost to sixth-seeded Zamboanga in the first round.
Heading into the 2019–20 season, most of its core players left the team, with Jaime moving to Bataan, Apreku moving to Pampanga, and Mangahas moving to Biñan City. The Cagers, now led by GJ Ylagan, win only seven games in the 30-game season, which ranked the team 13th in the South. In 2022 Muntinlupa finished with a 6–15 record, and barely made the playoff picture, by ranking 8th in the South. The team then lost to Zamboanga once again in the first round.
Muntinlupa then rebuilt its roster for the 2023 season. With the acquisitions of collegiate players John Amores and JL Delos Santos, as well as former Davao Occidental member Marco Balagtas, the Cagers rose to a 16–12 record, ranking sixth in the South. Muntinlupa faces the third-seeded GenSan Warriors in the first round.
Meycauayan Marilao Gems In 2026, after new ownership acquired the Muntinlupa franchise, the team relocated to southern Bulacan. The team was originally going to be named the Marilao Gems, before adding Meycauayan to its location identifier. The Gems would become the second team hailing from the province of Bulacan.
Home arenas From 2018 to 2023, the Muntinlupa Cagers have always played their home games in Muntinlupa Sports Center. Starting in 2026, the team will play their home games in San Jose del Monte Sports Complex.
Venue Location 2018 2018–19 2019–20 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 Muntinlupa Sports Center Muntinlupa San Jose del Monte Sports Complex San Jose del Monte, Bulacan colspan=7
Current roster
Head coaches Muntinlupa Cagers / Meycauayan Marilao Gems head coaches # Name Start End Achievements Ref. 1 2018 2018–19— 2 2018–19 2018–19— 3 2018–19 2018–19— 4 2019 2019— 5 2019 2019–20— 6 2019–20 2019–20— 7 2021 2021— 8 2022 2022— 9 2022 2022— 10 2023 2023— 11 2023 2023— 12 2024 2024— 13 2025 2025— 14 2026 current—
Notable players
Individual award winners
All-MPBL First Team Allan Mangahas – 2019
MPBL All-Star Day
All-Star selections Allan Mangahas – 2019 GJ Ylagan – 2020 Biboy Enguio – 2022 John Amores – 2023 Marco Balagtas – 2023 JL Delos Santos – 2023
Pre-game event winners Domark Matillano – 2022
PBA players
Ex-PBA players Val Acuña Chad Alonzo Harold Arboleda Egay Billones Miguel Corteza Biboy Enguio Rey Guevarra Chito Jaime Al Vergara
Drafted to PBA Kemark Cariño – 13th overall, season 48
Other notable players Bong Go
Season-by-season records League champions Division champions Qualified for playoffs Best regular season record
Season Regular season Playoffs Division Finish GP W L PCT GB Stage ResultsMuntinlupa Cagers 2018 — 3rd 9 6 3 2 QuarterfinalsSemifinalsFinals won vs. Navotas, 2–0won vs. Parañaque, 2–1 2018–19 Datu Cup South 3rd 25 15 10 5 Division quarterfinals lost vs. Zamboanga, 1–2 2019–20 Lakan Season South 13th 30 7 23 19 Did not qualify 2022 South 8th 21 6 15 12 Division quarterfinals lost vs. Zamboanga, 0–2 2023 South 6th 28 16 12 7 Division quarterfinals lost vs. General Santos, 1–22024 South 11th 28 7 21 14 Did not qualify2025 South 12th 29 10 19 15Meycauayan Marilao Gems 2026 North 4th 25 14 11 9 Division quarterfinals TBD All-time regular season record 81 114 5 playoff appearances All-time playoff record 7 10 1 finals appearance All-time overall record 88 124 0 championships
Notes
References