Nimes emerges top candidate for NCAA top rookie

MANILA, Philippines - Mapua’s Fil-Aussie rookie Josan Nimes should be a cinch to this year’s Rookie of the Year honors in the 87th NCAA basketball tournament.

Nimes has been playing man-possessed the past few weeks and just recently poured in 20 points in carrying the Cardinals to an 80-59 rout of the Lyceum Pirates at The Arena in San Juan Friday and to a place inside the magic four with a 6-6 (win-loss) record.

The sterling effort was enough to win Nimes the Accel/3XVI NCAA Press Corps Player of the Week award backed by Gatorade and given weekly by scribes from the country’s tabloids and broadsheets.

Nimes was mentioned in the same breath as teammate and fellow neophyte Fil-Palestinian Yousef Taha and MVP race leader Calvin Abueva of San Sebastian, who were also candidates for the weekly plum.

But Nimes’ effort turned out just too hard to ignore.