Green and blue together

It was an unusual get-together staged by Nike marketing country manager Courtney Cole-Faso at the Treston Gym in Global City the other night. She invited cheerdancers, players and broadcasters from Ateneo and La Salle to demonstrate the passion behind the schools’ rivalry before a visiting audience of 12 from the Beaverton head office and four from Singapore in town for a series of meetings with an eye on emerging markets.

The visitors couldn’t watch a UAAP or NCAA or PBA or FIBA-Asia game because none was scheduled so Courtney did the next best thing. She brought the visitors to the Treston Gym, sat them down in the middle of the basketball court and moderated a lively discussion on what makes both schools tick. If you’re talking about passion for the game, you’ll witness it in a La Salle-Ateneo contest.

A booming bass drum, a rhythmic snare and traditional school cheers welcomed the guests from La Salle and Ateneo. Former Archers point guard and now Air 21 player Simon Atkins walked in. So did I, representing my alma mater. Then, Blue Eagle star Kiefer Ravena was introduced with broadcaster Mico Halili, a loyal Atenean through and through. We sat facing the audience and prompted by Courtney, spoke candidly about the rivalry. Before we started, a big screen showed the first few minutes of the recent first round game between the schools.

Mico mentioned that Kiefer came from La Salle but saw the light and transferred to Ateneo. I congratulated Ateneo for its championship run and said the Eagles were inspired by the Archers to overachieve. Mico and I agreed that while the competition is fierce on the court, players from both sides respect each other, that the rivalry brings out the best in everyone whether in sports or in any other field. Kiefer said he plays extra hard against La Salle and Simon said it’s forgiveable for the Archers to lose to any team except Ateneo.

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Mico said family traditions will keep the rivalry alive forever and even showed a picture in his phone of a tyke wearing a green shirt with the words “Beat Ateneo.” He said the kid was about four years old with no clue as to the rivalry but wore the shirt because it had to have been given by someone in his family with ties to La Salle. The shot was taken while La Salle played NU, not Ateneo, which made the shirt even more intriguing.

I mentioned that the rivalry dates back to the late 19th century when the Jesuits and Christian Brothers debated on turf coverage in their educational mission. When they landed in the Philippines, it was inevitable that the rivalry spilled over to sports. In 1939, President Quezon inaugurated the first Ateneo-La Salle dual meet at the Rizal Memorial. The ball hasn’t stopped rolling since. On a light vein, I said since Ateneo had first option on blue as a school color, La Salle chose green because a lot of Christian Brothers were Irish in the early years. La Salle’s colors are actually blue and gold but in the Philippines, green is the hue. I added that green has a much brighter connotation than blue because it is environment-friendly and besides, we all love to shop in Greenbelt and Greenhills. Seriously, Mico and I said the rivalry between two world-class educational institutions is a positive factor in producing outstanding graduates who wind up as captains of industry, successful businessmen, prominent professionals and top-caliber athletes.

On the side, Kiefer said his right ankle sprain is now almost completely healed, he’s at the 80 percent level, meaning the King Eagle should be ready to fly when Ateneo takes on La Salle in a second round matchup on Sept. 1. Kiefer, a Kobe Bryant fan, said he underwent rehab to recover from the injury and no surgery was required.

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As for Simon, he’s fully concentrated on his job with Air 21. He recently had surgery in his left eye that was badly scratched in an accident involving teammate Wynne Arboleda at practice.  Doctors patched him up with 12 stitches, including five on the eyeball itself. Simon is back in the gym.

“Our import (Zach Graham) arrived last weekend and because of his jet lag, coach Franz (Pumaren) got us to practice from 6 to 9 in the morning once,” he said. “So we were at Hoops Center by 5:30 which is fine with me because you’ve got the rest of the day free. We’re doing okay at practice. Carlo (Sharma) and Vic (Manuel) have joined us from Meralco after the trade with Noy Baclao and John Wilson. Eric (Salamat) is still recovering from his ACL injury so maybe, coach Franz will sign up Paul Zamar who’s trying out with us.” Simon said center Bryan Faundo showed up for tryouts with Air 21 and Talk ‘N’ Text but eventually inked a contract with Globalport.

A few months ago, Simon’s father passed away. He lives with his mother. His sister now resides in Australia with their half-sister, a doctor. “I’m grateful to La Salle for my education,” he said. “Without basketball, I wouldn’t have gotten an education because my family was bankrupt. My father was swindled out of $3 Million by his lawyer and we had difficulty even paying the miscellaneous fees of P20,000 in my enrollment. At La Salle Zobel, my teammate Martin Reyes used to give me his shoes. At one time, I walked around in Reeboks, the Shawn Kemp model, with two holes at the tip of the shoes. Luckily, I made it through college and now, I’m a professional basketball player. I owe it all to La Salle.”

Simon called Kiefer “the future of Philippine basketball,” a meaningful tribute from an Archer to an Eagle. In a word, that’s respect. Special thanks to Courtney, Nike regional communications manager Raena Cheong and Nike sports marketing manager Jino Ferrer for the warm hospitality at the event.