The goldsmith of such consistent excellence is Ato Badolato, now in his 31st year of coaching the Red Cubs, perhaps the longest tenure of any living coach in the Philippines. One of the prohibitively few comparable stints that come to mind is Tex Winter, an active coach since after the Depression. But his success is staggering when you consider that this was his fifteenth title, the first since 1999, meaning he has won a championship practically every other year, a staggering achievement in a field wherein players are constantly lost to graduation. And this season, he reached the finals via a 14-0 sweep of the eliminations.
"I’ve liked basketball since I was a kid, and was appointed coach of the midget team quite by accident," admits Badolato. "I was a working student."
That started a string of championships unparalleled to this day. But, more than that, his players have gone on to conquer the sport at every level. There is one thread that strings together Chito Loyzaga, Benjie Paras, Ronnie Magsanoc and today’s budding superstars Ren-Ren Ritualo, LA Tenorio and Magnum Membrere. They all came out of the San Beda junior mill, expertly molded by Badolato.
"We all know how good a coach coach Ato is," says Claiford Arao, the Cubs 6-5 starting center who also played on the Philippine youth team. "But he teaches us more than basketball. He teaches us the right attitude, and things about life."
"He doesn’t just teach you on the court, but off its, also," adds forward Jay Agbayani."He’s already got such a big name, made such a big mark in the industry in junior basketball, you’d be proud just to be on his team."
Badolato’s boys have discovered his formula for winning championships. He drills them well in practice, and loads them with experience, so that high-pressure games don’t wilt them.
"The secret of our success is that we’ve joined many, many tournaments since they were in grade school, because I know there is no substitute for an actual game, and this is what builds them up," he told The Star.
Fundamentally, Badolato has noticed a pattern among junior players, perhaps from watching too many pros. They simply don’t pass as often as they could to spot the open man.
"I believe that our players dribble too much," he explains. "This just makes the defenses of the other team look so good. We try to tell them that, less dribbles, less chances you’ll make an error."
Budding center Michael Baldos learned firsthand how hard it was to go all the way to the finals.
"There are so many games you have to go through to get to the championship," he recalls. "They had to tell us how to treat the games as if they were just ordinary games, not a championship."
Junior NCAA Finals MVP Jayvee Casio was the revelation of the tournament. He poured in 33 points in their Game 1 loss to Letran, then bounced back with 19 to seal the championship. He was unerring from the 3-point line.
"Coach To really motivates us. He tells us how to perfect what we need to do in practice," the young guard reveals. "He says we should just play our game, and things will just come."
"In the second game, we knew we had to win to finish the series," says flashy point guard Yuri Escueta. "If we lost, then the 14-0 would have been for nothing."
Even the team’s managers, Dilip Budhrani and Rajan Gidwani (both high school batch 72, when Badolato came in), marvel at Badolato’s ability to handle young players. It is a rare gift that he can spot a winner the moment he steps onto the court.
"The last time we won the championship was in 1999. I had players like Membrere, (Arjun) Cordero, Tenorio. I gues that team had more superstars than this team. The teamwork of this team is something that I haven’t seen for a while."
"I really can’t explain," Badolato wonders. "Maybe if I look in a player, I can see stability, I can tell right away if he’ll be a winner or not."
And that is the secret of the San Beda Red Cubs, one that can’t easily be replicated. They can spot winners. And their track record attracts even more to their fold. After all, who doesn’t want to be counted among the best at what they do?
You may reach me at bill_velasco@hotmail.com