Stunning end to the Philippine Patriots' title reign

What appeared to be an stirring home victory for the AirAsia Philippine Patriots turned into a disaster in Game 2 of the AirAsia ASEAN Basketball League after another fourth quarter meltdown completed a season full of inconsistencies.

Poor outside shooting, costly fouls and turnovers paved the way for the Chang Thailand Slammers to climb back into the contest before securing a 75-68 victory to wrest the ABL crown in front of a shocked crowd at the Philsports Arena in Pasig City.

Their downfall was greatly secured in the game's final 12 minutes as they blew a 14-point third quarter lead that allowed the Slammers to snatch the title away and win the league's second season.

Thailand's Cameroonian import Chris Kuete woke up in the fourth hitting 11 of his 12 points while getting help from Filipino imports Ardy Larong and Froilan Baguion, American center Jason Dixon and Thai cager Attaporn Lertmalaiporn.

Adding insult to this heartbreaking loss, the Patriots put themselves in foul trouble early in the fourth, allowing the Slammers to inch closer and later take the lead for good on foul shots and struggled shooting against the zone.

In the end, the Patriots walked away in utter dismay even as they watched Dixon and Baguion celebrate their second straight ABL championship alongside their Thailand teammates.

Dixon and Baguion were part of the Patriots' title team last season, although the two played contrasting roles in squad that admittedly was slightly better than this year's squad.

Dixon, now at the age of 38, was registering double-double almost every game en route to winning the Best Import award.

On the other hand, Baguion failed to get enough playing time during the latter parts of last season as the Patriots inserted Warren Ybanez, JP Alcaraz and the now-retired Christian Coronel during the completion of their title run.

This season, the two were playing big roles for the team, particularly in the finals.

And Baguion, who finished with 19 points, four rebounds and four assists, displayed what the Patriots have missed, playing steady in the two games of this final series and have almost outplayed Ybanez and Egay Billones.

He showed that in this clinching game, when he used a Dixon screen to get away from traffic then drove inside the lane for a driving layup that made it 71-66 with 56.1 seconds remaining.

From there, it was all over. Kuete added more insult with a breakaway jam off a missed shot by the Patriots. Minutes later, the Slammers were hoisting the ABL crown in front of a dead silent venue.

At first it looked like a hostile venue with perhaps the loudest crowd the Patriots ever heard this season. The audience shouted even more when triples by the likes of Ybanez, Benedict Fernandez and Billones helped them take a double digit lead in the third.

Earlier, Freeman was eager enough to bounce back from his disappointing showing in Game 1. This time, he was able to avoid foul trouble picking up just one in the first half (an unsportsmanlike for hitting Larong) and even scored an alley-oop dunk in the second period.

He was also responsible on a fastbreak opportunity when he fed Billones, who then pass it to a trailing Thomas for a three-point play with about 2:49 left in the third that made it 60-46.

But Freeman, bothered by a nagging ankle injury, began to slow down. His two freethrows with less than a minute left in the third gave the Patriots a 52-41 lead and would never score again as the rest of the crew played lackadaisical on offense that helped Thailand gain an opening.

It was a fairy tale ending to a turnaround year for the Thais. Last year, financial problems and inconsistent play hounded the then-Thailand Tigers in posting a horrendous 3-12 record in the inaugural ABL season.

But Thailand made a number of changes. A new owner stepped in to resolve their monetary problems with the Chinawongwatana family (it's patriarch is a basketball legend in Thailand) taking over the helm while adding Dixon, Kuete, Baguion and Larong to reinforce their local cagers.

Lertmalaiporn, last year's Regular Season MVP, got help from fellow Thai Piyapong Piroon, who had been a stellar outside shooter all season long (Piroon didn't play in Game 2 after nursing a knee injury in their semifinal series win over the Singapore Slingers).

At times, even Sopon Pinichpacharalert and Mana Jantuma, who played quality minutes in the fourth quarter of Game 2, would give solid production for the team coached by Raha Mortel, a Filipino who is a native of Sampaloc but has been in Bangkok since 1992 when he started playing commercial ball there.

So what's next for the Patriots? Freeman and Thomas have said they would like to return for another tour of duty but the defeat will likely pave way for a major roster overhaul, particularly on the local cager. The Philippine Daily Inquirer said in an article that coach Louie Alas' contract is set to expire while the rest of the ABL team will make bids to strengthen their lineups even further aside from making early preparations for the league's third season.

As one unnamed members of the Patriots said, "Parang bangungot ang nangyari sa amin. Siguro dahil dyan, baka siguro dalawa lang matira next season."

The return of the Philippine Basketball League

A press release was sent to sports editors and writers late Monday afternoon regarding the return of the Philippine Basketball League after almost a year of hiatus. The target date for the season-opening tournament is Feb. 26.

The release announced that six teams have confirmed their participation in the league's return with Pharex, Agrinurture (Ani-FCA), Cobra and Excelroof as holdovers from the previous tournament while adding Hobe Bihon and Cafe France as its new participants.

And as rumored for months, Sports Vision, the group that was instrumental in the formation of the Shakey's V-League in 2004, will handle the management of the revived league with a rookie draft to be held on Feb. 5.

The timing of this announcement is interesting since the PBA recently announced the formation of the D-League and the PBL being inactive after a joint venture with Liga Pilipinas in the formation of the short-lived Tournament of the Philippines.

Today, the PBA will have the D-League as one of the agendas in an owners meeting somewhere in Greenhills. This announcement will perhaps play a key role in the future of this project.

The D-League is somewhat of an answer to the PBL's inactivity with almost similar rules such as allowing players 17-26 years old to participate.

The revived PBL is likely a soft launch as it is trying to recover from financial woes and the departure of some teams that led to the league's downturn. However, the sustainability of the league is still a question mark and it's success or downfall will be determined through the upcoming tourney.

But barring any hitches, this is major news for basketball players. Many are PBA free agents and the ASEAN Basketball League is nearing its completion, thus making Filipino cagers playing for the six participating teams in that league to find jobs after the season.

The league's golden years came in the PABL era of the 1980's when players such as Alvin Patrimonio, Benjie Paras, Bong Alvarez, Samboy Lim and Vergel Meneses were able to use the league as stepping stones in their legendary basketball careers.

In the 1990's, the PBL's popularity somewhat diminished but saw the long title reigns of Tanduay Rhum, Hapee Toothpaste and Welcoat Paints while seeing the start of Fil-Ams Asi Taulava and Eric Menk in the Philippine basketball.

The previous decade saw a bit of a revived interest in the league. With the soaring popularity of college basketball, member teams were able to tap school teams as core members of their ballclubs. At the same time, Harbour Centre won a record seven straight titles from 2006-2009.

The last PBL tournament was held from mid-February until late-March of last year with Excelroof, led by San Sebastian stars Jimbo Aquino and Calvin Abueva, beat Pharex B-Complex via a sweep of the best-of-three series.

The league has been quiet since.

On UP and Perpetual

It's not good to be a fan of a varsity basketball team bearing initials containing U plus P and sports maroon or brown-colored uniforms these days.

With winless records to show, University of the Philippines and Perpetual Help are close to completing their dismal performances in the UAAP and NCAA, respectively.

The Maroons (tough to call them Fighting Maroons when that moniker isn't reflecting on the hardcourt) recently fell to a 0-11 slate following another lopsided loss, this time against Final Four contender Adamson 74-51.

On the other hand, the Altas dropped to 0-9 on Wednesday when they bowed to Jose Rizal University, 66-55.

It's quite a disappointment for both teams considering how they have played solidly in the preseason tournaments.

Everyone was hoping for a Maroon revival after a quarterfinals showing in the Filoil preseason tourney. With the veterans somehow maturing and highly-touted Mike Silungan expected to inject some offensive firepower, expectations were high in Diliman.

In fact, they trained in the United States during the summer and even got a huge sponsor boost from Meralco.

But alas, the hopes of reaching the Final Four for the first time 1997 turned out to be a complete disastrous campaign.

After a 0-2 start, the weird coaching change occurred as former PBA champion coach Boyet Fernandez was appointed as acting coach in lieu of Aboy Castro "taking a leave of absence."

It didn't help that the Maroons encountered three heartbreaking losses: 1.) University of Santo Tomas (when Silungan committed a foul in regulation play with his team up one with two ticks left. The Tigers eventually won in overtime) 2.) National University (wasted a 22-point lead in the third quarter) and again 3.) National University (Diony Hipolito's missed freethrow with two ticks left and NU up one).

Adding insult are the injuries and suspensions: Mark Lopez done for the year with an ACL, Woody Co out with an injured foot, Silungan missed one game due to flu and Alvin Padilla getting suspended twice.

As for Silungan, who was hoped by many to be the team's "savior", his stellar plays in preseason tournaments and the Father Martin Cup events became an afterthought and has somehow became some sort of a mortal player in the UAAP.
Sigh. As some would say, "Lahat na yata ng kamalasan sa basketball, naranasan na ng UP."

As for the Altas, they were able to make waves in the preseason that made them one of the favorites to enter the Final Four of the 86th NCAA basketball tournament.

However, the eligibility issues on Marlon Gomez and Paul Nuillan prior to the start of the season instantly killed momentum of the squad of coach Boris Aldeguer.

Even without the two, Perpetual showed signs that it can be one of the toughest teams to beat in the NCAA when it pushed San Sebastian and Mapua to hard-fought matches only to falter down the stretch.

But since then, it was all struggle for the Las Pinas cagers even with the presence of Arnold Danganan (the league's third leading scorer but has been suspended recently by the league), Jet Vidal and Mark Sumera.

Veteran Raffy Ynion has been forced to play center in Gomez's absence. It hasn't helped that his weight problems are affecting him on the court.

The disappearing act this season has been Chris Elopre. The 5-foot-10 guard showed wily abilities last season but those flashes have somehow disappeared this season.

With both leagues already in the second round of hostilities, it is the only hope of some, particularly students, faculty members, alumni and even non-fans are getting that sympathy for each defeat.

Many are hoping that they could get that elusive first win before the season is done. The question though is: Makukuha nga ba nila?

Notes:

- UP hasn't won a game since August 22, 2009 when then-rookie Mikee Reyes erupted for 22 points in an 83-78 win over La Salle at The Arena in San Juan.

- Since then, the Maroons have lost 15 consecutive games.

- Perpetual hasn't won a game since August 12, 2009 when it beat Emilio Aguinaldo College, 86-79.

- The Altas have since lost 18 straight.

- Before the streak, UPHSD finished the first round with a 3-6 slate.

Marata plays like Tito 'Ricric' as La Salle stuns Ateneo

Somewhere up in the sky, the late Ricric Marata must be proud of his nephew, La Salle's sophomore guard Sam Marata.

Marata made two big shots in the final minutes as the Green Archers came back from nine points down to score a come-from-behind 66-63 win over two-time defending champion Ateneo yesterday in the 73rd UAAP basketball tournament at the Araneta Coliseum.

The former 2007 Juniors Most Valuable Player for UP Integrated School completed La Salle's amazing rally in the last five minutes by hitting a booming triple off the fastbreak to cut the lead to one (63-62) then drained a top of the key jumper off a screen that put his team ahead, 64-63, with just 1:28 left to play.

The young La Salle cagers, a heavy underdog in this contest, came through with several defensive stops in the last few possessions to end their six-game losing skid against Ateneo dating back to the start of the 2008 season.

"Mukhang galing sa kanya yun. Siguro ginuide niya yung mga tira ko," said Marata, whose uncle, a legendary shooter in the PBA, passed away earlier this year at the age of 45.

Entering this game, the Green Archers also lost nine of the last 11 games against their bitter rivals but those two streaks came to a halt to the delight of half of the 16,566 fans that wore green shirts.

"I don't know what to say, I'm so happy. We were down nine points but the boys showed their heart. It's been two years already (since we last won)," said coach Dindo Pumaren.

Marata and Joshua Webb shared topscoring honors with 12 points each with the former converting all of his four shots from rainbow country. Lanky center Yutien Andrada had six points and seven rebounds while Joseph Tolentino had five points, four rebounds and five assists.

Rookie Jarelan Tampus, a recruit from Letran, was also responsible in the comeback, hitting two baskets off transition that cut down the deficit to 62-57 after falling behind 62-53 before Marata came through in the clutch.

"Sam (Marata) played well with those big shots," said Pumaren, who was a teammate of Marata with the RP team in 1987. "But of course, we owed that to Tampus. He made the difference."

It was a disappointing loss for Ateneo, which made its first eight shots in the fourth period behind Justin Chua but missed its final seven shots. At the same time, it also played paltry defense against what coach Norman Black described as a "scrappy La Salle team."

"We didn't finish strong," said Black. "And it didn't help that Kirk Long fouled out and Eman Monfort went down with cramps in the end."

"But it was the defense that let us down. Things such as not picking up their man on fastbreak, giving up three-point shots and not following around screens," he added.

La Salle won despite a low-scoring, sloppy game that saw each squad turning the ball over 18 times and combined for 45 fouls.

Chua, who delivered in their win against University of Santo Tomas last week, nearly turned into a hero again with 16 points. He had a chance to tie the game on the last possession but muffed a potential game-tying trey and a desperation triple after his miss that ended the game.

As usual, several prominent figures saw the action with business tycoon Manny V. Pangilinan, newly-appointed Philippine Sports Commission chairman Richie Garcia and his predecessor Harry Angping, Harbour Centre boss Mikee Romero and Smart Gilas members Rabeh Al-Hussaini, JV Casio and coach Rajko Toroman.

The scores:

Second Game

LA SALLE 66 - Webb 12, Marata 12, Atkins 9, Tampus 6, Andrada 6, dela Paz 5, Tolentino 5, Mendoza 5, Vosotros 3, Villanueva 2, Ferdinand 1, Paredes 0.

ATENEO 63 - Chua 16, Monfort 11, Long 9, Buenafe 7, Salamat 6, Salva 5, Golla 3, Escueta 2, dela Cruz 2, Austria 2, Tiongson 0, Gonzaga 0.

Quarters: 14-15; 26-30; 46-42; 66-63.

Note: This is a raw story that I submitted to the Manila Bulletin just a few minutes ago.

One cardiac game to remember

It's only fitting that a cardiac finish would cap off a very tight quarterfinals series between Alaska and Barangay Ginebra.

And the Aces, who won a 93-91 thriller in Game 5, should be thankful for Joe Devance and import Diamon Simpson, who both conspired on a big basket amidst a broken play, the distraction of a huge Ginebra crowd, and the shot clock winding down.

That play, where Devance passed the ball against two defenders from the three-point area into an open Simpson inside with five seconds left, coupled with Cyrus Baguio's strip on Eric Menk on the next play concluded perhaps one of the memorable series in league history.

"You know, it's almost sad to me that someone had to lose this basketball game," said Alaska coach Tim Cone. "Obviously, I'm glad it wasn't us but still someone had to lose the series."

"But I don't think you couldn't have a more even series, I don't think I ever seen this tight of a series where every game is decided in the last 30 seconds of the basketball game so you know tough one to lose my heart goes out to them," he added.

Many thought the Aces had the game wrapped up in the palm of their hands when LA Tenorio banged home a three-pointer with 2:15 remaining.

At that point, Tenorio made his 25th point of the game while Simpson, who eventually finished with 24 points, 22 rebounds and five blocks, wrecked the Ginebra frontline inside the shaded lane and Cyrus Baguio, eager to beat his former club after he was dealt for Willie Miller during the conference, buried 5-of-7 threes for 22 points.

But the lead was later cut the four then Simpson nearly turned from hero to goat on two plays. One, he accidentally tipped home a missed shot by Jayjay Helterbrand with 31 seconds left.

Then, he threw an errant baseball pass straight into Helterbrand, who confidently drained a booming triple from the right side of the arc that rocked the 21,062 strong fans on hand to see the game. By then, it was 91-90 with 28.5 ticks left.

If anything Cone had to be glad on the succeeding play was the composure his players showed.

First, Baguio nearly lost the ball then passed it to Tenorio, who nearly lost the ball on a double team. He returned the ball to Baguio. But when the Ginebra defense pressured him, he dished it to Devance, who was quickly approached by two defenders from the right elbow and with the shot clock nearly expiring.

But Devance perhaps thought to hit a quick shot but in a split second dropped the ball to an open Simpson, who made up for his two mistakes earlier by quickly sinking the layup with 5.0 seconds remaining that put Alaska back in the lead - for good.

"Well, it wasn't that great (of a play)," Cone said. "But you know it was a tough play and a tough position, the crowd going wild, I'm trying to call a timeout and they can't see me but you what I like was the composure we showed in the last play."

"I thought that Joe showed great composure catching that ball. He could have fired up a quick shot but still made the extra pass to Diamon for the layup with just seconds to go in the shot clock. He has really just grown in front of our eyes in these last few weeks."

The Kings tried for a last second victory but Baguio came away with a huge steal off Menk and was fouled with 0.1 seconds left. He later split his charities and then reportedly taunted his former team with a few gestures. On the other end there was Helterbrand, on the floor with teammates consoling him and perhaps battling tears after Ginebra was denied of a chance to create another one of its customary comebacks.

"It's a little bittersweet because these kinds of series are the ones you learn to appreciate," said Cone. "I mean these (games) will be the ones you'll remember 10 years from now when you're in a rocking chair talking to your kids. Even though it was only a quarterfinal series, it felt like a championship series."

How memorable this series would be? Four games were close and Games 2 and 4 likewise were close in the last two minutes even though the Aces went up 2-0 before the Kings fired back by winning the next two and had a chance to repeat the same comeback it did in the previous Philippine Cup quarters.

Now that this series is over, Alaska can now look forward to an intriguing best-of-five semis clash with Talk N' Text which starts on Wednesday.

The Aces are banged up and the Tropang Texters, who earned an outright semis seat thanks to a 15-3 record highlighted by a 13-game winning streak, is well rested but Cone hopes to come away with some surprises.

"We are coming off a tough series and we are a little banged up and we had some guys that are just coming back from injuries so they have the huge advantage in the first game or two," Cone said.

"But we just have to battle with them and stick it out and go deeper to our bench and see if we can get some guys who can surprise them but you know Talk N' Text is formidable but we are not afraid of them."

Author Notes: Perhaps this writer should learn from Yogi Berra's famous quote saying, "It's ain't over till the fat lady sings." Well, this writer decided to go back to the media room with 2:15 left thinking that Alaska had it in the game and apparently had to witness all that magic unfolded through the television screen. This was a fitting end to a three-playdate PBA coverage of this writer. This will come out on Tempo tomorrow. Konting edit lang dito especially the sequence of the Simpson basket dahil ang bilis ng pangyayari (had to rely on that YouTube clip that was posted early this afternoon by someone to review the play again).

The Cebu Ninos are for real

For those who doubt how good are the M. Lhuillier Kwarta Padala Cebu Ninos outside of the Philippine Basketball Association, well believe the hype.

In extending their remarkable winning streak to 25 games (not counting those tune-up games against the likes of Smart Gilas and PBA clubs), the Cebuano cagers etched their name into the history books as the first-ever leg champion of the Tournament of the Philippines, the joint venture between the Philippine Basketball League and Liga Pilipinas.

The Ninos finally showed what kind of a team they are when they scored a masterful 87-73 victory over the PBL's Ascof Lagundi in the finals of the Manila leg held at the Emilio Aguinaldo College gym.

It felt like another title for the M. Lhuillier and coach Yayoy Alcoseba once again showed his stoic but contented smile as his players whooped it up.

For Alcoseba, he felt it was the best game they played since coming over in Manila.

"This was perhaps the best game we played in the leg as seen in the way we played in this finals," said Alcoseba.

Although they swept all three elimination round games, the Ninos showed flashes of rust and sluggishness since playing their last tournament came in the Liga Conference III in November (that completed a rare 21-game sweep).

Still, M. Lhuillier was able to hurdle Ani-FCA (which has its own streak although not everyone would be proud of), Treston Laguna and Ascof Lagundi.

How good are the Ninos even on bad days?

On offense, they move the ball well. The addition of Warren Ybanez (the Finals MVP for the ASEAN Basketball League champion Philippine Patriots and should have made the Barako Coffee roster) solidify the backcourt alongside Stephen Padilla even without wily guard Woodraw Enriquez because of a cervical spine injury he endured after a fall against the Alaska Aces in a tune-up game.

Their big men, Marlon Basco (who is a bit more bulky than his Ginebra days), Abby Santos, Frank Nailon and Nat Cruz, aren't the biggest and athletic Cebu had but they challenge every shot inside on both ends leading to numerous rebounds. As seen against Ascof, they were able to outhustle and forced big men Vic Manuel and Raymond Aguilar to muff inside baskets.

They also have good scorers. Mark Magsumbol is underrated but can hit the jumper and drive inside while Bruce Dacia is a shadow of his former self (high-flying days in the MBA) plus injuries has slowed him down but makes up for it with a decent outside shot.

Perhaps, one key ingredient for this team is the cohesion they have. Cebu isn't as strong this year unlike its Conference III roster (the bench is more deeper back then although the core remains almost the same) has been together even before Liga Pilipinas was formed so almost everyone is familiar with each other.

Back to Padilla, age has somehow slowed down the former pro cager but not his outside shot. He squares up well and shoots consistently. No wonder, he holds the record for the most of threes not only in the MBA and in Liga. And thus far, he carries the TOP record (firing eight against Ani-FCA).

And with the Ninos' huge 19-point deficit reduced to just six entering the fourth quarter, in came Padilla and less than 20 seconds fired a three-pointer from the right elbow.

Later, he made two more from rainbow distance and by then Cebu was ahead by 15 and never looked back.

With this win, are the Ninos the team to beat? There are still teams that are also capable of winning this initial tournament.

Misamis Oriental, Cebu's chief rival, is expected to field a strong lineup (probably with Patrick Cabahug and Khiel Misa there) and Cobra Energy Drink has enlisted three ex-UE Red Warriors who are coming off stints in the ABL (Elmer Espiritu, Val Acuna and Rudy Lingganay) plus bullstrong Pari Llagas and Jorel Canizares.

We'll see. Eight more legs to go.

A tale of two NCAA teams, with reflections from the one who wrote this entry

I was born at the Perpetual Help Hospital in Las Pinas 24 years ago. Back then it's exterior was like any typical hospital built during the 70's and 80's. Now it looks like a cavernous place that would make Oakland Raiders owner Al Davis remind of the Oakland Coliseum.

Near that hospital is the school itself, then known as Perpetual Help College of Rizal. It would later became University of Perpetual Help Rizal, then University of Perpetual Help Dalta System and now University of Perpetual Help System Dalta. Still, its cheering squad would chant U-P-H-R! regardless of the recent name changes.

I have many memories about that school. I didn't study there but I remember the 1995 BF Resort interbarangay finals was held at their gym (It was played there for fear that a team would sabotage the tournament) with my brother's team - The Trojans - winning the title.

Our team, Bloomfield Academy played there in 2002 (I was in fourth year high school back then). We played Bernardo College in the annual Las Pinas Private Schools Association (LAPPRISA) and fell by 17 points in the first half. I was in early foul trouble but we managed to make a huge comeback cutting it to four only to falter down the stretch. Perhaps one of those memorable losses I always remember.

As far as Perpetual's NCAA team is concerned. The Altas aren't the toast of the league. It rarely made the Final Four even with the likes of Chester Tolomia, Gilbert Malabanan and Jojo Manalo on the squad. (The three would be part of the Welcoat-Shark rivalry in the PBL). So I was glad that the team made it in 2004 finals (after a heartstopping Final Four thriller against San Beda) led by that deadly scorer in Noy Javier and point guard Khiel Misa. Unfortunately, they ran into the PCU Dolphins of Gabby Espinas, Rob Sanz and Jason Castro (the hero of Game 1) and got swept in that series.

Since then, things haven't been doing well for Perpetual basketball, enduring several losing seasons. But the arrival of coach Boris Aldeguer and a number of recruits, ironically from PCU, has rejuvenated the squad.

Aldeguer, who perhaps travels about 30 minutes to an hour from his Alabang home to campus, is looking to transform this team into a contender much like what he did with La Salle Zobel in the UAAP juniors division. He hopes to make this squad competitive in three to four years time.

Jump shift to Emilio Aguinaldo College. We'll all I can say is, I used to hate the Generals big time!

As a college student at De La Salle University-Dasmarinas, I've seen a lot of great DLSU-D-EAC games in the UCAA and NCRAA. But for the most part, the Generals mostly went home with the W.

EAC achieved a three-peat in the UCAA from 2004-2006 and won one NCRAA cage crown in 2005 led by the likes of forward Nino Songco, lefty shooter Bong Melocoton and perhaps the greatest player in school history - Ronjay Buenafe.

Some of my memorable matches were the opening of the 2004 UCAA season at the Rizal Coliseum where the Generals spanked the Patriots behind Songco's inside game. Another came in 2007 UCAA tournament when both teams figured in a bench-clearing skirmish at a super empty Arena in San Juan that began with DLSU-D's Leo Pelayo (a former classmate in a Religious Education subject) and EAC's Gino Lapuz. The incident saw the ejection of a total of 14 players from both sides.

The best clash of these two schools came in the 2005 UCAA finals. DLSU-D won Game 1 at home to move one step closer to the school's first-ever championship but EAC answered with a Game 2 win in front of its home floor in Ermita, setting up a third game at the San Andres Sports Complex.

And in Game 3, the Patriots were on the verge of winning the big one (although not as big as the UAAP or the NCAA) leading by 13 points in the fourth quarter until Ebuen made it a one man show and eventually tied it at 70-all with under a minute left.

DLSU-D tried to regain the lead but missed a shot opportunity and a seldom-used player (I forgot his name) was fouled with no time left. He muffed the first try to the delight of a few Lasallians in attendance who wished for the contest to play five extra minutes. But to their disappointment, he calmly sank the second freethrow and the Generals won their second straight UCAA title. They completed the "Grandslam" the next year beating St Francis but would not have been a reality had the Patriots avoided their customary act of wasting leads and for the Generals to complete their customary comeback.

Anyway, when this team got the nod as one of the teams that entered the NCAA last year, I was happy. A part of me said that it's a chance for DLSU-D to compete for the crown but other than that it's about this successful college team maturing. They placed eighth last season and the Generals will have to deal with the agony of losing for the next few years.

There are no more Buenafes or Ebuens leading the team. It's now Argel Mendoza as their top player along with Yaya brothers - a bulky Lowell and a medium-built Russell - and also former UST Tiger Emilio "Milan" Vargas (who was mistakenly called by a Champions League barker as Emilio Garcia when he played for the Tigers).

So maybe you're wondering what is this all stories about? We'll I just relate it to the game they played in the Filoil Flying V Invitational at The Arena in San Juan. It's a bit of a meaningless game as two teams are a bit down in the standings although Perpetual sports a 2-3 record while the Generals tote a dismal 0-6 card.

I decided to watch the game until about three minutes in the fourth quarter while dealing with some articles that I have to finish. The scoreboard said Perpetual up 61-55 with about three minutes to go. I just learned that the Altas erased a 15-point deficit to take the lead.

However, EAC, determined to get its first win, rallied in the homestretch and a hook shot by Vargas tied the game at 72-all with 54 seconds left.

Perpetual's Arnold Danganan, a talented lefty guard formerly from the NAASCU's STI Olympian, scored two of his amazing 20 fourth quarter points (he finished with 29) to regain the lead only for the Generals' Jay Santos to bury a three from the right corner for a 75-74 lead with six ticks left.

But one clutch shot deserves another (changed the word from one lucky shot deserves another. Isn't that right Jason Richardson and Ron Artest?). Danganan was the inbounder for the Altas a threw a lob pass into the deep baseline and Marlon Gomez caught the ball.

Guarded by an EAC defender tightly, Gomez was still able to make a small spin and then stretched his arm for a high percentage shot the ball and luckily rolled into the rim and Perpetual went up 76-75 with three seconds left. The Generals had no time outs left and tried to go for one last shot but ran out of time. Perpetual wins!

With that, the Altas won their third straight and is now 3-3 to keep their quarterfinals bid alive. EAC finished its initial stint in this preseason tournament losing all of its seven games to the dismay of the coach Nomar Isla and his wards. It can only end its stint by doing its unique salute while singing the school hymn and move on to prepare for the NCAA season.

"I really expected this to be a close game knowing the fact that EAC hasn't won a game," Aldeguer said during the postgame interview.

Earlier, he praised Danganan's big performance and was surprised to know he scored 20 points in the fourth saying, "He was really feeling it." and described the play for Gomez's basket mentioning that there was somehow a slight miscommunication (citing a screen for Jet Vidal that wasn't executed) that luckily went in their way.

At the end of this rainy day, one team moves on with a chance to reach the next round while another bidding goodbye without a win yet hoping it won't be the measuring stick of how they would fare come the NCAA season.

Hey Barangay Ginebra, 'Miller Time' has finally arrived!

It's been almost a month since Willie Miller was dealt to the Barangay Ginebra Kings in exchange for the equally-talented Cyrus Baguio.

Since that blockbuster trade, the two-time Most Valuable Player winner has yet to make an impact with the Kings. With a deep roster, particularly on the guard spot filled with veterans Jayjay Helterbrand, Mark Caguioa and Ronald Tubid, Miller has been forced to play a limited role similar to what Baguio encountered during his one-year stint with the Kings (he came over from a trade with Burger King, now Air21).

So what a perfect time for the "Thriller" to prove himself that he is still a big-time player even with a star-studded roster - a Wednesday night game with sister team San Miguel Beer, winners of nine straight and the solo leader in the PBA Fiesta Conference, in front of a good-sized crowd at the Big Dome.

Good thing, I was able to watch this game with Manila Standard's Jeric Lopez. We arrived in the second period after covering the Filoil tournament at The Arena in San Juan (Earlier, Air21 survived past Barako Energy, 99-98 after wasting a 31-point lead!). Ginebra was up by a slim margin and later hiked its lead to 62-48 at the half. By that time, Miller had 13 points.

But the Beermen tried to close in for most of the second half. The likes of Jay Washington and Arwind Santos contributed more on the defensive end while combining for a few baskets, point guard Alex Cabagnot had an all-around game (although spent some time on the bench to let Olsen Racela try to make SMB take the lead but he was soon back on the sidelines).

Import Gabe Freeman, meanwhile, was his usual self - using his athleticism and playing aggressive basketball that saw him at one point made a difficult tip-in off a missed shot. (I'm still amazed everytime he plays. It's been a while since I saw him play live in action. I covered his games with the ASEAN Basketball League champion Philippine Patriots.

The Kings, though, kept the lead with a mixture of productions from Helterbrand, Rudy Hatfield and import Mildon Ambres. Eric Menk spent most of the second half on the bench after a solid first half. Seems like coach Jong Uichico noticed he struggled when he was suddenly guarded by Freeman.

It was still close with around five minutes left. Dondon Hontiveros cut the lead to six, 91-88, on a three-pointer.

By then, it was Miller Time.

After hitting a three prior to Hontiveros' shot with the shot clock winding down, Miller later knocked another one with about three or two seconds left on the 24 keeping the Kings up by a solid margin.

A few possessions later and with maybe four seconds on the shot clock, Ginebra found Miller again - this time open on the right side. Hontiveros rushed to guard Miller faked then hit a leaner at the buzzer and all of a sudden it was 99-88 with more than two minutes left.

Virtually, it was game over and most fans, convinced that Ginebra had already won, headed towards the exits, perhaps some rushing to catch the last MRT ride.

Game ends with Ginebra winning 104-90, its eighth win in 12 games for third behind idle Talk N' Text while handing SMB its second loss of the conference but is on top of the standings with a 10-2 slate.

Miller, whose last big game performance I saw from him was perhaps during the 2007 Fiesta Conference when he powered Alaska to the championship, finished with 26 points and eight assists, a far cry from his near 8 and 3 averages since joining Ginebra. He also made 4-of-5 threes in 35 minutes.

Stat-wise and impact-wise, this was his best game since the trade. For sure, this kind of performance will be very rare for Miller in the next few games, given the talented lineup Ginebra has.

But those rare "Miller Times" could be very special