Phl Patriots confident of retaining ABL crown

MANILA, Philippines - The AirAsia Philippine Patriots will be hard pressed to retain the AirAsia ASEAN Basketball League (ABL) crown as it faces a team hungry for title when the best-of-three series begins Sunday in Bangkok.

The Chang Thailand Slammers hold a 2-1 edge over the defending champions after the three-round elims with the former going all out to reassert their mastery over the Patriots on their home turf.

But the Filipinos remain confident of their chances with coach Louie Alas downplaying the Slammers’ so-called homecourt edge.

“We beat them once in their own homecourt so there’s no reason why we can’t beat them again. This is about pride and tradition,” said Alas.

Aside from retaining the crown, the Patriots will also try to keep the winning tradition of one of the co-owners of the team in Harbour Centre president and CEO Mikee Romero, who boasts of 10 titles since joining the basketball competitions in 2005.

Romero’s Harbour Centre franchise in the Philippine Basketball League (PBL) had won a record seven straight championships.

The Harbour owner also helped fund the campaign of the Philippine team that won the 2006 SEABA Cup championship in Jakarta and the 2007 SEA Games gold medal in Thailand.

Still, the Patriots, co-owned by business tycoon Tony Boy Cojuangco, will have a lot of hard work to do to foil the Slammers’ title bid.

But while the Patriots swept their way to the finals against the Kuala Lumpur Dragons, the Slammers needed a third game to dispose of the Singaporeans in their own side of the semis duel.

Imports Gabe Freeman and Steve Thomas will carry much of the load for the Patriots, who also hope to draw big games from Egay Billones, Junjun Cabatu, Warren Ybanez, Chito Jaime and Benedict Fernandez.

“If we can play the kind of game, energy and cohesion we dished out during our series with the Dragons, then we’re going to beat the Slammers,” said Freeman, who averaged 20 points and 10.4 rebounds heading into the finals.

Thomas, the league’s leading rebounder with 17 per game, is also itching to get back at the former Patriots’ import Jason Dixon, who outshone him in their last two games. Dixon normed 16.6 points and 12.6 rebounds.

The Slammers, on the other hand, will pin their hopes on Piyapong Piroon and Attaporn Letmalaiporn, two of the league’s top gunners.