Of Beauty Queens and Basketball

 

 The” Santacruzan at Araneta” last Saturday, May 18, was a welcome delight and sidelight of our trip to Araneta to buy tickets for the Alaska-Ginebra PBA finals the next day. It’s not often these days that we get to see Santacruzan with real beauties as “Reynas’. It was in fact Gabo’s first experience to watched it.

The parade started near the ticket station so we got an excellent view of it. It’s rare that we get to see an assembly of beauties, parading slowly one by one as they made their way to the streets of the Araneta Center. And there they were: Bb. Pilipinas Ms. Universe beauties, pompous and regal in their queenly gowns, waving, smiling, and gamely acknowledging the excitement of the crowd. And guess who was the queen of them all, the Reyna Elena?  She was no other than Ms. Janine Tugonon, the reigning Bb. Pilipinas Ms. Universe and Miss Universe Ist Runner Up. She was charming and radiant, indeed a true Filipina Beauty. We were just almost two arms length from them so it was indeed an exciting experience to see them up close and personal. Gabo had a field day shooting shots at almost all angles. The last of the pack was the Reyna Emperatriz, equally charming and glamorous and patiently waiting for her turn to walk as the parade came to a slow pace because of Janine. She must have been a beauty queen in her time. I would have wanted to know her but her escort forgot her name.

On our way to the MRT station for our trip back to Makati, Gabo wondered why the Santacruzan (whom he knew only from their Hekasi classes in school) featuring Bb. Pilipinas beauties was held at Araneta. “Gab, you know, the chairman and the person behind the Bb. Pilipinas Universe organizing committee is Ms. Stella Marquez Araneta, a former Ms. Universe herself and the wife of a scion of the Araneta clan, the owner of Smart Araneta Coliseum and the Araneta Center complex.” There.

Why Ginebra Lost: Gabo’s Post Game Analysis

It’s all over but the shouting. But Gabo’s story, our story actually, begs to be told.

We, (meaning I, Gabo and Rago) were there. We were witness and had been part of history. Midway into the game, the electronic scoring panel told it all. “Congratulations for the new all time record crowd of 23,436. Maraming, maraming salamat po”. So that was what the long, long lines we saw  out there indicated, mused Gabo. The shouting, the roars and the jeers, the cheering and shrieking and the placard and balloon waving were also an expendable experience. In the end, the releasing of the balloons, kept at the ceiling and just waiting for its rightful moment, put the exclamation point at end game. It may not be the end result my kids had wanted. And we in fact endured just to watch this game. It was quite an ordeal lining up the previous day and the morning after to buy tickets(Ticketnet blocked the online ticketing) and lining up again for more than hour in the heat of the afternoon sun before the gates were opened, and finally rushing back to catch the last MRT trip to Makati where we parked, all for my kids love of basketball. It was however well worth it.

I came to the game positively looking for a Ginebra win, coming from 2 games down. I thought this time, they will come to their senses and steal this one though I said the Aces will close it in Game 4. Gabo and Rago (who turned out also to be pro Ginebra), were all excited, shouting to their hearts out but that would only last for the first 3 quarters. Leading most of the way and trading shots after shots every time Alaska threatens to come close, the Kings ably held on a precarious one point lead, 72-71 by the end of the 3rd quarter. But suddenly, early on in the 4th, Alaska broke loose and Ginebra was left out cold, forgetting how to shoot and score. It was a monumental lapse. With 5 minutes to go and Alaska now starting to pad their lead to double digit, the Alaska red shirted fans started to jubilate, smelling the sweet scent of a title victory in the making. The screen for the first time focused on the already joyous owner, Fred Uytengsu, both arms up in the air for an early celebration. Now, the Alaska fans have started to shout,” Ginebra, gising na”. The loyal Ginebra fans, who consisted almost 75% of the Big Dome, were eerily silent.

All this time, Gabo was disappoinetd and ejected. “It was the fault of the coach. The coach lost it”. That was how he saw it. I saw it too. And I felt very disappointed by what we saw. How could the Ginebra coaching staff miss it? Early in that fateful 4th quarter, when both teams were neck to neck, coach Al Francis Chua pulled out at the same time both LA Tenorio and their import Macklin. Instead, they inserted the benchwarmers, the diminutive Lagabala and the seldom used Tala. Only Caguioa was left as certified scorer or shooter but obviously, coming in from injury, he was not his old self. Earlier, LA Tenorio was hitting treys in all angles and slashing through the defense, showing why he was the Best Player of the Conference. When he came back, he turned cold. On the other hand, Casio was shooting hot in and out and Thoss, the Finals MVP, was wrecking havoc inside. If LA and Macklin were called back to the bench to rest, the pacing was poor. It took the sting out of the Kings. No amount of time outs from the Ginebra bench could overturn the tide. With still over 2 minutes to go, they seem to gave up the fight. I thought, this is not the original Ginebra spirit; the Jawo spirit that never gives up till the final buzzer. This is the spirit that endeared them to the fans and the reason why it is the most popular team in the PBA. Their battlecry: “ It ain’t over til’ it’s over”. In the end though, as a tribute to the Ginebra loyal fans, amidst the raucous Alaska celebration, they roared out their patented deafening last hurrah, “Ginebra, Ginebra”. After that, they started to line out of the Big Dome.

We could have left before the final buzzer but Rago wanted to see the final moment- the releasing of the balloons. So we lingered as the court was swamped by a sea of red shirted Alaska fans.
 
When we arrived home near midnight, Gabo’s report to his mother was , Mama, the coach lost it.

Take your Pick: Ginebra or Alaska

Photo  grabbed from PBA Latest Rumors

This year’s edition of the PBA Commissioner’s Cup is a blockbuster with the finals between two title hungry teams providing the fitting climax to an exciting finish. Record crowds, those who are lucky to get tickets, are flocking to Smart Araneta and/or MOA Arena. Crowd darling Barangay Ginebra vs. the resurrected Alaska Aces. It’s a battle between two drinks, Gins vs. Milk.

The moment Ginebra reached the semis, my eldest kid cum sports home analyst, Gabo, gave me his marching orders. If Ginebra goes all the way to the finals, we should likewise flock to Araneta or MOA. He is pro Ginebra. I was also once upon a time a certified Ginebra fan, an original. But that was during the Jaworski-Arnaiz era. When they faded in the scene, I drifted to any team I saw that excited me. My fascination with NBA also affected my interest in PBA. The level of play, the athleticism, how the game itself is played- it’s another world out there. But these past few years, I admit, I’m for San Mig Coffee and primarily because of James Yap.

Honestly, during that semis, I told Gabo, the dream finals would be the sister teams Ginebra vs. San Mig, both certified crowd drawers. I think the PBA gods would always pray that Ginebra at least could make up to the semis. And to reach the finals up to the deciding game would be God’s graces. But my mind says, it’s going to be San Mig vs. Talk and Text. I was wrong in both counts. And now, in this series, while Gabo is with Ginebra, my younger kid, Rago, and I root for Alaska. And I will make again another prediction. In this best of 5 finals, it’s Alaska in 4.

We’ve been monitoring Ticketnet on line for this Sunday Game 3 showdown but it  has been closed for this series. This morning, we were informed that they are not opening on line tickets and that if we want to purchase tickets, we should go to Araneta and line up. And we did just that this afternoon but had to settle for a general admission ticket, the only seats left available.

So, we'll be at the bleachers tomorrow night. 

Good Riddance, Tim Cone

It's difficult not to write about Tim Cone, or his parting ways with the Alaska Aces basketball team. After all, even if you're not really a die hard PBA fan, I guess  you would still know him. First, it came as a rumor. But then, when there's smoke, there's really fire. And yesterday, with their management in complete cast, Fred Uytengsu, the "Alaska Man" announced the news. With that, it ended what sportswriters say as the longest and most successful team-mentor partnership in the Philippine Basketball Association. Some good things really don't last.

Tim Cone was the face of the PBA in the 90's together with his stars Johnny Abarrientos, Bong Hawkins, and Jojo Lastimosa. That was their decade, their glorious era, winning a grand slam in 1996 and a near triple crown in 1998. All in all, in Tim's 22 years as coach, they won 13 championships, and 25 Finals appearances. Throughout these years, you see this man, always in white long sleeve and tie, walking to and from the bench, kneeling, and often exploding and arguing with the referees. All his assistants were also in that long sleeve-tie attire, the only team in the PBA who don such formal dress code. Look at the NBA coaches. They are always prim and proper in their formal suits. That was perhaps Tim's badge in the PBA, not so much that he's an American used to such dress code. But it gives some formality and serves notice that basketball, or PBA, is not just play but also business.

Why he's leaving is obviously the big question. He and Fred Uytengsu, the owner, are best of friends even before the PBA days. Officially, they said, he's taking a new career, will take a rest, a change in direction, such and such. But the grapevine said that Tim was disappointed and frustrated that while  other teams are focused on building up their teams by signing up marquee players, etc, Alaska is in no mood to do that. In fact, it seems to disintegrate, releasing top gun Joe Devance with other stars like LA Tenorio and Cyrus Baguio ready to be traded. Years ago, Kobe Bryant threatened to leave the Lakers if Management will not sign up ( read: invest) players who can support him in their title bids. That time, the Lakers just can barely make it to the play-offs. So Management satisfied Kobe, and the last build up was the transfer of Pau Gasol from Memphies.Instantly, that season, the Lakers became serious title contenders, winning the Western Conference. It got short though in the Finals when they got clobbered by their old rival in the East, the Boston Celtics in a dream match. They redeemed themselves the next year and reigned supreme for 3 years. That's basketball and that's business.

It is not farfetched though that we will see Tim Cone again, perhaps sooner than expected.  Maybe also in a different uniform.     

UAAP Newsbreakers

This year's UAAP basketball tourney is becoming interesting; true to experts opinion. Here are two reasons why, so far.

Image Source

The UP Fighting Maroons scored a mini shocker in its opening game yesterday. It  finally remembered how to win after defeating the UE Red Warriors, 69-61. With new coach Ricky Dandan, UP finally ended its 18 game losing streak, dating back to its last victory on august 22, 2009, an 83-78 victory over the De La Salle Green Archers. Last year, it went scoreless. Its last win over the UE Red Warriors was still in 2006. After losing all its game last season, indeed there is no way but up for the Maroons.

I studied high school at UP Iloilo, now UP Visayas. So, my heart still goes with UP. We used to cheer, push on UP on going to win"; it's alright, its okay, we'll gonna beat them anyway, etc. Even during that time, UP has always been the cellar dweller. Except in 1986 when PBA stars Benjie Paras, Ronnie Magsanoc, Eric Altamirano,and co. ended UP's long, long drought by winning the championship (This was the time that my wife was in UP Diliman, so she had a really wonderful and memorable UAAP experience). Oh, UP Beloved! Incidentally, next week, we are going home to UP Visayas to attend our alumni homecoming where we are Jubilarians.

The other newsbreaker yesterday was the victory of the UST Tigers over the rejuvenated NU Bulldogs in overtime. The highlight of the game was the match up of the celebrated rookie Bulldog Bobby Ray Parks against UST's guard Jeric Teng. Suddenly, UST becomes now not just a growling tiger in the midst. Parks performance, 16 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 blocks was more than just a respectable performance. The Bobby Parks-Jeric Teng one-on-one tussle reminds us of those one on one encounter in the PBA of  Jeric's father, Alvin,the "Robocop" defensive specialist with the San Miguel team against Bobby Ray's father, 7-time Best Import Awardee Bobby Parks. It's all in the family it seems.

UAAP Sidelights: The Eligibility Case of Greg Slaughter and Bobby Ray Parks, Jr.

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All's well that's ends well. The UAAP 74 Basketball Season unfolds this Sunday with experts saying that this is one of the toughest editions in years. This after the UAAP Board cleared and gave the go signal to play to Ateneo's prize recruit, 7' behemoth Greg Slaughter and NU's celebrated rookie, Bobby Ray Parks. Slaughter, who once led the University of Visayas (UV) Lancers to four (4) straight championships in the Cebu Collegiate Meet, and Parks, the talented son and namesake of many time PBA Best Import, Bobby Parks, were hounded by eligibility questions decided only this late by the UAAP Board. This now make NU a serious contender and a step closer for the Blue Eagles in their drive for a rare 4-peat championships. Expected to crowd them are last year's runner up, FEU Tamaraws, La Salle Geen Archers and Adamson Falcons. Of course, upsets from the UE Red Warriors now coached by PBA veteran Jerry Codinera and Pido Jarencio's UST Fighting Tigers can't be ruled out.

Slaughter's short stint with the Smart Gilas national team while in residency was the issue. UAAP rules states that a player in residency is barred from playing in any other league though it was reasoned out that there's an amended rule to the effect that this will not apply when the player suited up with the national team. For Parks, he needed one more year residency after studying 3 years high school in the US. But there is also a rule that when at least one parent worked as an OFW, this 2 year residency does not apply. Parks was born in Batangas, finished elementary in Manila and spent 3 years in high school in the US when his Filipina mother worked there as OFW. He came back last year for his 4th year. And in his personal appeal to let him play, he pleaded his case in fluent Filipino (Tagalog) in a presscon the other day.

I fully agree with my favorite sports columnist Quinito Henson of the Phil. Star when in his column yesterday he said that this eligibility issue could have been resolved by the board a long time ago. They knew full well that these two players are geared up to play for their respective schools months ago. Were the schools also remiss in this? After all, Aldrech Ramos who also once played for Smart Gilas was cleared early this year but it was because FEU officials then wrote the Board to decide on his case.

This issue somehow, in my view, put a dent in the spirit of fairness and fair play and may, as Henson added, "put unnecessary ill will among member schools."

Be that as it may, this gonna be another blockbuster Sunday. Roll out the drums. Blare the trumpets.Put on your school colors. Hail, the gang's all here. See you at Araneta!