Kevin Love conquers Manila

MANILA, Philippines – In just a short trip to Manila, Kevin Love surely made a great impact to Filipino basketball fans on and off the court.

Upon arriving, Love took time to visit and play with the kids at the Manila Boystown. The rains may have made the outdoor basketball floor wet but in never stopped them in having fun that day and took the basketball clinic indoors.

Later that evening, Love hosted a charity auction that benefited the kids at the Manila Boystown and also to help restore their basketball court. One of the main items that were auctioned was a signed Kevin Love replica jersey from the Minnesota Timberwolves, which was won by PBA player Marc Pingris, who made a P27,000 bid.

The following day, Araneta Coliseum hosted the Master Game Face Challenge, where Love participated in the 3-point shootout and the skills challenge.

During the 3-point shootout, Love was to team up and shoot for both Team Chris and Team Marc. For the his first crack at the competition, he was shooting for Team Chris and he scored 15 points alongside Chris Tiu’s 17, with Kevin Ferrer and Jeff Chan having 13 points each. For his second try, he scored 19 huge points for Team Marc that went along with Jeric Teng and Roi Sumang scoring 13 points each and Gary David’s 10 points, but it was not enough to beat Team Tiu’s squad.

As the Master Game Face Challenge All-Star Game went on, Team Tiu jumped to a huge lead early and held on to win against Team Pingris with a score of 135-100. Chris Ellis scored 31 points for Team Chris while Greg Slaughter made 27 points while shooting a rare 3-of-5 from the 3-point arc. Despite the losing effort, Slaughter was selected as the MVP of the game and joining him at the Mythical Five was Cliff Hodge, Chris Ellis, Mike Tolomia and Jericho Cruz.

The second event that Love participated was the Shooting Stars competition where he formed his own team to a selection from Team Chris and Team Marc. Team Kevin prevailed as Love hit the half-court shot to seal the win at 1:08.

When everything was said and done, Kevin Love was asked which of the players he was impressed the most.

"Big fella, MVP no.1, Greg Slaughter!" answered Love.

Fans have been treated with a short but sweet visit from Kevin Love but this is what he left to the Filipinos.

“I enjoyed the time. It has been great, and I plan on coming back, I love i! We love the Philippines!”

About the Author: Ernest Hernandez is a regular contributor for NBA.com Philippines and Philstar.com. He also hosts a sports program named “Sports On-Air” that can be heard at DZEC 1062 khz every Sunday from 7-8pm. Follow him on Twitter @ernestleo.