All Stars give RP 5 lessons in international play

MANILA, Philippines - Coach Chot Reyes gave the Powerade Team Pilipinas a high passing mark even as he steered the reinforced PBA All Stars to a 97-89 win over the Nationals in the closing game of the 2009 Motolite PBA All Star Week at the Araneta Coliseum last night.

Reyes maximized the use of imports David Noel, Gabe Freeman, Anthony Johnson and Jai Lewis as the All Stars foiled the Nationals’ bid to complete a sweep of the three-game series.

Noel, the Ginebra import, had a great night, topping the slam dunk contest then leading the All Stars to their eight-point conquest of the Nationals in the climax of the All Star festivities backed by Powerade, Coca-Cola, Nike, Accel and Phoenix Fuel.

The former North Carolina Tar Heel churned out 18 points, nine rebounds, three assists, one steal and one block in a solid 26-minute outing. He was later named the game’s MVP.

“It was a tough game and we’re lucky we had four imports on our side. This is a learning process for the RP team and we came out to contribute something to them. We played a game this team would encounter in the international competition,” said Reyes.

Reyes only had good words on how the Nationals played in the series.

“I would grade them very high, about 85 to 90 percent. I gave them a high mark as they played very hard, were tough on defense and showed excellent teamwork,” said Reyes.

“No question, this team has a lot of athletic players. With their athletic ability, if the wingmen hit the outside shots, they will be very, very strong. It will be a fantastic team,” Reyes added.

“It was a loss which can be useful for us. We could have fallen into a false sense of security had we won the game,” said coach Yeng Guiao.

“I’m still very positive with the progress of the team. We’re just learning the deeper character of the players that we have. You’ll see true test of characters in adversity. We need adversity to test the players’ character. And I’m happy with what I’ve seen,” Guiao added.

As in their initial outings, the Nationals played a balanced offensive game with Arwind Santos topscoring with 18 and James Yap, Mick Pennisi and Willie Miller adding at least 11 each.