Ildefonso bags 2nd MVP crown, Player of Conference plum

Turning a year older Saturday, Danny Ildefonso again got the piece of metal he had wanted as a birthday gift as the Pangasinense pride won a second straight PBA Most Valuable Player award yesterday.

At 25, the San Miguel ace player became only the third cager to win back-to-back MVP honors and the youngest among six players who have won at least two MVP trophies.

And Ildefonso, the 1998 Rookie of the Year awardee, won his second MVP distinction in the most lopsided derby ever since the league’s inception in 1975. He earned 11,129 points and beat his closest pursuer, teammate Danny Seigle, by a whopping 9,178-point margin.

Two other Beermen in Olsen Racela (1,762) and Nic Belasco (1,269) came in third and fourth in the race, respectively, with Red Bull’s Davonn Harp (1,090) settling for fifth place.

Ildefonso, Seigle and Racela along with sta. Lucia’s Dennis Espino and Alaska’s Ali Peek composed the year’s Mythical First Five. Harp and Belasco were joined in by Purefoods’ Noy Castillo, Alaska’s Kenneth Duremdes and Rudy Hatfield of Pop Cola in the Mythical Second Team.

Castillo got another award as the Most Improved Player, Ginebra’s Mark Caguioa as expected emerged as the Rookie of the Year while Purefoods’ Rey Evangelista captured the Sportsmanship Award.

The All Defensive Team was composed of Espino, Evangelista, Chris Jackson, Marlou Aquino and Patrick Fran.

Ildefonso made history aside from winning the season’s MVP award, the 6-foot-6 former National University King Bulldog swept the season’s three Best Player of the Conference (BPC) plums. Incidentally, Ildefonso also won the season’s All-Star MVP award.

"Sobra-sobra ito, hindi ko inaasahan," said Ildefonso after joining Bogs Adornado, Ramon Fernandez, Abet Guidaben, Alvin Patrimonio and Benjie Paras in an elite club of players with two or more MVP trophies won.

He’s the youngest as he got his second MVP trophy only a day after he turned 25. Adornado was older by months. Fernandez, Guidaben, Patrimonio and Paras won their second MVP awards in their 30s.

But hardly anybody was surprised of his MVP feat as he did play so big in the season about to end.

What made many PBA watchers raising their eyebrows was Ildefonso’s BPC victory.

Way behind at fourth in the statistical race, Ildefonso banked on the media votes and the five-man committee composed of representatives from the PBA Press Corps, Viva Vintage, PBA Press Photographers, the Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) and SCOOP to grab the award from Espino.

Even Ildefonso himself was surprised he won over Espino. — Nelson Beltran