2025–26 PBA Philippine Cup finals

The 2025–26 PBA Philippine Cup finals was the championship series of the 2025–26 PBA Philippine Cup and the conclusion of the conference's playoffs. It was the first championship series of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA)'s 2025–26 season. The best-of-seven series was contested between the San Miguel Beermen and the TNT Tropang 5G. The series began on January 21 and ended on February 1, 2026.

The San Miguel Beermen and the TNT Tropang 5G competed for the 47th Philippine Cup championship and the 139th overall championship contested by the league. In a rematch of the 2025 Philippine Cup finals, San Miguel entered this series as the current holders of the Jun Bernardino Trophy.^[1] San Miguel would defend their Philippine Cup triumph in six games. This was also SMB's 31st overall title and their 12th in the Philippine Cup.

Starting with this finals series, PBA announced that the trophy for PBA Finals MVP would be named in honor of the 19-time PBA champion Ramon Fernandez.^[2] June Mar Fajardo was the inaugural recipient of the Ramon Fernandez Trophy and became the first five-time Finals MVP in league history.^[3]

San Miguel Beermen lost its first two games to NLEX Road Warriors and Phoenix Fuel Masters. With the so-called "Depth Squad", playing assistant coach Chris Ross, and Leo Austria, they managed to go on a hot 9-game winning streak to clinch the top seed and secure a twice-to-beat advantage. In the Quarterfinals, they faced NLEX again, which they eliminated them with ease after coming back in the 3rd quarter, thus outscoring NLEX to get the lead. In the Semifinals, they met Barangay Ginebra San Miguel for the second time. Game 1 won in favor of Barangay Ginebra, thus ending their 10-game winning streak. To counter, they bounced back in Game 2, tying the series 1–1. In Game 3, Don Trollano was hot from the bench as he scored 33 points to secure a 2–1 series lead. By that time, June Mar Fajardo was experiencing strain on his shoulders, which he had since the Quarterfinals. That limited his points in both Games 3 (they won), and 4 (which they lost, thus tying the series, 2–2), but still managed to secure monster rebounds, one that is a mastermind on why they won in Games 2 and 3. In Game 5, he managed to secure a double-double 22 points and 11 rebounds to secure the lead again, 3–2. In Game 6, CJ Perez was hot in the first quarter, scoring 30 points, and finished with 41 points as the Beermen put the final nail on Ginebra despite threatening to edge the game even closer and to a decisive Game 7, 4 games to 2 to book a ticket to the finals and have another shot at the championship.

TNT finished as the third seed in the elimination round with an 8–3 record, tied with the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, and thus held twice-to-beat advantage in the quarterfinals.^[4] They then beat the Magnolia Chicken Timplados Hotshots in one game before taking on the sister team Meralco Bolts in the semifinals.^[5] They beat Meralco in five games to return to the finals. This will be the team's fourth straight finals appearance, after winning two of the last three finals in a near-Grand Slam finish in the previous season.^[6]

In the second quarter, Glenn Khobuntin of TNT pushes the lead of TNT to 48–29, the biggest lead of the game. By the end of the third quarter, San Miguel rallied to cut the lead to 6, but it wasn't enough to complete the comeback after TNT stayed strong at the end of the game, despite crunch time in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter.^[7]

San Miguel turned the 44–33 lead in the second quarter into a 57–33 heading into the half. TNT tried to come back, where they cut their deficit to 10 in the beginning of the fourth quarter. San Miguel then expanded the lead into 90–67, but TNT cut San Miguel's lead again to 10. However, San Miguel ultimately controlled the lead until the end of the game, tying the series.^[8]

CJ Perez of San Miguel struggled in the first three quarters of the game, but in the fourth quarter, Perez scored 17 points, which also includes 7 points scored in the final minute of regulation. According to Perez, it was not part of his play, but he stated that it just so happened for the last two shots to go in. On the other hand, Calvin Oftana of TNT led the scoring with 25 points, but it wasn't enough to win the game, now falling behind 1-2 to San Miguel.^[9]

Prior to the start of the game, San Miguel Beermen's June Mar Fajardo awarded his 13th Best Player of the Conference award, extending his record for most career BPC awards.^[10]

Being down 1-2, Calvin Oftana of TNT led the team scoring with 29 points on 5-of-8 shooting from three-point range. In the first minutes of the second quarter, RR Pogoy re-injured his hamstring while going for a steal against CJ Perez. Despite the injury, TNT still blew San Miguel with a 23-point win, turning the series into a virtual best-of-3.^[11][12]

TNT started strong in the first quarter, taking a 23-7 lead halfway through the first quarter. However, San Miguel evaporated TNT's lead and cut it down to one, 48-47. They went on to outscore TNT in the third quarter, 30-13, taking the lead for good. San Miguel lost June Mar Fajardo briefly in the third and fourth quarters with a knee issue, though he managed to score 14 points and 11 rebounds.^[13]

San Miguel took an early lead into the game, surging into a 26-5 lead. But Calvin Oftana of TNT would quickly evaporate it and would score 14 points in a row, followed by a basket by Glenn Khobuntin, cutting the lead down to five, creating a 16-0 run for TNT. In the third quarter, TNT led 68-66 after Jordan Heading scores a three-pointer, but San Miguel quickly recovered where they unleashed a 10-0 run, turning it into a 76-68. Since then, TNT can no longer grab the lead back, and San Miguel won the Philippine Cup title for the second time in a row. June Mar Fajardo was named Finals MVP.^[14]

Under the league's partnership with TV5 Network, the series will be aired on RPTV with simulcasts on PBA Rush and Pilipinas Live (both in standard and high definition). The PBA Rush broadcast provided the English language coverage of the finals. The Pilipinas Live also provided the English-Filipino language coverage of the finals.

Due to Sev Sarmenta's commitment to the 2026 Philippine Women's Open, he only called a single game, the series-clinching Game 6. After his retirement from basketball, Gabe Norwood debuted as an analyst for PBA Rush in this finals.

• Additional crew:
  • Trophy presentation: Jutt Sulit
  • Celebration interviewer: Apple David and Belle Gregorio