Welcoat: A feat well done

Sweeping the 2002 Challenge Cup opened another chapter of Welcoat Paint’s championship tradition in the PBL. And coach Leo Austria proved that he can bring that tradition to the next level.

Austria bucked all odds and pressures of the best-of-five championship series knowing the caliber of his best pal but on-court rival Junel Baculi and the depth of his bench.

He considered the concluded PBL Challenge Cup the most prestigious in years, being laden with top caliber talents including four MVP’s, three in the championship series — Welcoat’s Romel Adducul and Eddie Laure, and Dazz’ John Ferriols, aside from MBA MVP Alex Compton who played for LBC-Batangas against Blu for third place.

But his wards led by Adducul, Laure and Ronald Tubid, played their hearts out to the very end and delivered their fifth championship sweep in seven appearances that further firmed up their billing as one of the greatest teams in PBL history.

"Mabibigat ang mga talents this conference and who would ever think na mananalo kami o masu-sweep namin ang series? All three games in this championship were so close na hindi mo alam kung sino ang mananalo until the last shot," said Austria.

"Malaki rin ang pressure sa akin because everybody was expecting us to win with the powerhouse line-up we had. I had doubts at the start knowing the caliber of coach Junel Baculi, and Dazz had the momentum going into the series."

"But the players took it upon themselves na makuha yung title. I would also like to thank the support of the crowd dahil yung cheers nila ang nag-boost ng morale ng mga players to hang on to the very last second. All out din ang support ng management kaya obviously, masaya ako sa team na ito," he added.

The championship series also made the Austria-Baculi rivalry more intense, thus bringing the league’s popularity to new heights.

"One good thing is Baculi and I are good friends. Kahit magkaribal kami on the court, we compliment each other because we push each other to the limit kaya very exciting ang games," Austria explained.

Game One gave Austria jitters with his big men in early trouble. Adducul was suffering from back spasms, while Jean Marc Pingris was nursing a stiff neck.

And they trailed 18 points after three quarters.

But Ronald Tubid rose to the occasion along with Pingris sparking a rally that forced the overtime. With proddings from the pro-Welcoat crowd in Lucena City, Adducul and Laure took charge in the extra period to draw first blood, 77-68.

In Game Two, Austria knew that Dazz was set to stage a big comeback. Unexpectedly, his wards played complacent and saw themselves trailing 29-36 in the third quarter.

But Laure came to the rescue, scattering 11 of his 15 points in the final quarter and keyed the 65-63 triumph with a big block on Allan Salangsang’s three-point attempt in the closing seconds.

Game Three saw major adjustments on Dazz’ gameplan. Noticeably, Baculi and Dazz team manager Bernard Yang both wore red shirts to counter Welcoat’s emblem colors.

But Adducul, inspired by his second PBL MVP plum, played his best performance ever, delivering 21 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks as the Greasebusters’ mismatch plan didn’t work well and suffered on two crucial looseballs by Cyrus Baguio.

Austria hopes this title sweep would be another start of Welcoat’s streak of successes even if a new set of players will comprise the team in the 20th season tentatively set to open on March 20.

"Next week, pag-uusapan namin yung tungkol sa formation ng team. Ang maganda sa Welcoat, Raymond Yu and Terry Que know the ABC’s of basketball and they want nothing but a winning team," said Austria.

"We still have to see kung sino yung available talents but definitely, it will have the same heart and character as this winning team," he added.