Year’s headline-makers in hoops: Varsity wars draw huge crowds

(Second of three parts)

Sellouts were par for the course in the UAAP and NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) competitions. Far Eastern University (FEU) blanked La Salle in the best-of-3 Finals for the UAAP senior men’s diadem. Arwind Santos and Mark Isip paced the Tamaraws’ attack. It was a sweet triumph for rookie coach Bert Flores who was an FEU assistant for nearly 10 years before his elevation.

Letran came from behind to dethrone Philippine Christian University in the other best-of-3 Finals for the NCAA senior men’s title. Coach Louie Alas leaned on MVP Boyet Bautista, the league’s Most Improved Player Aaron Aban, three-point specialist Jonathan Aldave, Mark Andaya, Erick Rodriguez and J. P. Alcaraz to get the job done.

Historic Wins For Zobel, Ateneo

La Salle Zobel clinched its first-ever UAAP junior men’s championship by sweeping University of the Philippines (UP) in the best-of-3 Finals. Coach Boris Aldeguer ended a 50-year championship drought for the La Salle juniors since the Kurt Bachmann era. Simon Atkins, David Urra and Joshua Webb showed the way for the Greenies.

The Ateneo Lady Eagles were another team that claimed its first-ever UAAP crown this year. Coach John Flores wrapped up the plum in style. The Lady Eagles finished the regular season with a win over FEU then tangled with UP in a Final Four match-up where the Maroons enjoyed a twice-to-beat advantage. Ateneo did what it had to do and repulsed UP twice in a row to arrange a title showdown with Adamson. In the best-of-3 Finals, Ateneo beat Adamson by 10 in Game 1 and by 12 in Game 2.

Shell Leaves The PBA

After 20 years in the PBA, Shell took a leave of absence and declared its franchise was for sale. The team made its pro debut in 1985 and went on to bag four championships in 1990, 1992, 1998 and 1999.

Through the years, the Shell coaches were Freddie Webb, Ed Ocampo, Joe Lipa, Dante Silverio, Bobby Parks, Arlene Rodriguez, Rino Salazar, Chito Narvasa, Perry Ronquillo, John Moran and finally, Leo Austria.

In its farewell appearance, Shell took third place in the 2005 Fiesta Conference.

Qatar Tops Champions Cup

Manila hosted the FIBA-Asia Champions Cup and Al Rayyan of Qatar emerged the only unbeaten team. Jordan finished second, Lebanon third and Iran fourth. The Philippines, playing importless, failed to break into the semifinals. Each team was allowed to play two imports.

After the tournament, Qatar was suspected of playing ringers by Jordan coach Maz Trakh.

"I don’t know about the citizenship laws in Qatar but from what I’m told, the Al Rayyan team had just a few players with Qatari roots," said Trakh. "If that’s true, it’s outright cheating." Qatar’s imports were Americans Todd Day of Arkansas and Pervis Pasco of Kansas State. But Qatar forward Erfran Ali Saeed admitted to media he is from Senegal and has lived in Doha only the last two years. Another player Saad Abdul Rahman Ali was said to be from Canada.

Greatest Game

The PBA celebrated its 30th anniversary by gathering 20 of the pro league’s 25 all-time greatest heroes to play in a nostalgic reunion at the Araneta Coliseum. A packed crowd was on hand to witness the game between the Greats Hataw and the Legends Laban.

There were 13 former MVPs among the stars and eight were at least 50 years old. Two are still active pros — Johnny Abarrientos and Kenneth Duremdes. Jaworski was the Hataw’s playing coach while Baby (The Maestro) Dalupan called the shots for the Legends who won, 96-92.

Caidic walked away with MVP honors after compiling 30 points, eight rebounds, three assists and three steals in 32 minutes.

Before the game, the PBA inducted its initial batch of Hall of Famers. Enshrined were Jaworski, Fernandez, Francis Arnaiz, Philip Cezar, Bogs Adornado, Atoy Co, Dalupan, Danny Floro, Leo Prieto, Rudy Salud, Emerson Coseteng and Joe Cantada.

PBA In Rockin’ Revival

Just when some doomsday soothsayers were predicting the PBA’s demise, the pro league suddenly came alive with a bang to open its 31st season. If there was any doubt as to the pro league’s durability, there is none now.

In the early months of the 2005-06 season, attendance averaged over 9,000 paying customers a game and more than 10,000 if you count the "scholars" who get their tickets for free. Those numbers are record highs. Additionally, TV ratings and sales are soaring with a distinct increase in viewership in the 16 to 24-year-old bracket.

The PBA staged its annual All-Star extravaganza in Laoag, Ilocos Norte, and the event was highly successful. In the peripheral side attractions, Air21’s Nino (KG) Canaleta amazed a sellout crowd at the Centennial Arena with several NBA-type jams to capture the Slam Dunk title, Red Bull’s Topex Robinson won the obstacle challenge, San Miguel Beer’s Paolo Hubalde sank a basket off a cabezada to edge Talk n Text’s Mark Cardona for the Trick Shot crown and Phone Pals long-range bomber Jimmy Alapag regained the three-Point Shootout diadem. The main games saw the sophomores beating the rookies and coach Ryan Gregorio’s North All-Stars trimming coach Joel Banal’s South All-Stars, 131-128.

A bonus was the legends trio of Frankie Lim, Ronnie Magsanoc and Alvin Patrimonio upsetting Alapag, Air21’s Ren-Ren Ritualo and San Miguel Beer’s Dondon Hontiveros in a team three-Point Shootout.

PBA commissioner Noli Eala attributed the league’s resurgence in popularity to several factors, including a concerted marketing effort, the consolidation of talent resulting in competitive parity and a rationalized season featuring only two conferences. (To be concluded)