Gilas link an edge for North

Eight players from the North team trace affinity to Gilas and it’s an advantage that coach Leo Austria will no doubt exploit against the South in the PBA All-Star Game in Puerto Princesa, Palawan, today.

Austria’s eight Gilas veterans are Marc Pingris, Jayson Castro, Japeth Aguilar, L. A. Tenorio, Beau Belga, Paul Lee, Gabe Norwood and Ranidel de Ocampo. Others in the North lineup are Calvin Abueva, Justin Melton, Arwind Santos and Terrence Romeo.

Familiarity is critical in an All-Star Game where practice time is limited. Austria’s cast is a virtual Gilas revival with every position plugged from point guard to center. Additionally, Austria won’t find it difficult to combine players on the floor since Belga, Lee and Norwood come from Rain Or Shine, Castro and De Ocampo from Talk ‘N’ Text, Pingris and Melton from Purefoods and Tenorio and Aguilar from Barangay Ginebra.

The North starters are Castro (in place of Mark Caguioa who is out with a hip injury), Pingris, Aguilar, Abueva and Melton. For the record, the top North vote-getters in the All-Star balloting are Pingris (23,947), Abueva (22,170), Aguilar (18,334), Caguioa (15,076) and Melton (12,312). Surprisingly, Melton made it as a first-fiver despite not having started a single game for Purefoods so far in the current Commissioner’s Cup. Hotshots coach Tim Cone likes to foist Melton off the bench. No doubt, Melton’s a crowd favorite – he’s an awesome leaper and a spectacular dunker.

Coach Alex Compton will rely on four Purefoods stars to spark the South – James Yap, Joe De Vance, P. J. Simon and Mark Barroca. He’s also got a formidable frontline with Asi Taulava and Greg Slaughter in the starting lineup. JuneMar Fajardo and Dondon Hontiveros begged off from playing due to injuries but Compton has more than enough talent to make up for their absence. Without Hontiveros, the South is still deadly from the outside, thanks to Jimmy Alapag and Jeff Chan. Then there are Reynel Hugnatan, Stanley Pringle and Cyrus Baguio to round up the cast.

Pringle is the only rookie in the All-Star Game but that shouldn’t a drawback. The Globalport guard plays like a veteran and he’ll thrive in a team with a dominant center to complement his style. Alapag’s appearance will be both emotional and sentimental. It’s his last game ever with his jersey now retired. He’ll reprise his partnership with Taulava and that’s something to watch.

Baguio is Compton’s only connection with Alaska so it may be difficult for the South coach to install his defensive system in the All-Star Game. But he could try. Baguio, Barroca and Pringle might just click as a combination in Compton’s press-trap.

Who will wind up the MVP is a big question. For the North, Romeo may not find it easy scoring unless the Gilas veterans accommodate his style. Romeo is the conference’s top local scorer and won the Three-Point Shootout last Friday. If he’s set up, Romeo will put a bundle of points on the board. Compton might tap Pringle to defend Romeo because of the familiarity aspect as they’re Globalport teammates. For the South, Baguio or Yap could steal the show. It’ll be an up-and-down contest so the big guys like Taulava and Slaughter might be a step slow in keeping pace.

The South’s starters are De Vance (replacing Fajardo), Taulava, Slaughter, Yap and Barroca. Fajardo was the team’s top vote-getter with 38,107. Next was Slaughter with 31,310 then Taulava with 24,062, Yap with 22,937 and Barroca with 15,197.

Last Friday’s All-Star festivities were highlighted by the Shootout and Slam Dunk Contest. Gary David didn’t participate in the Shootout as advertised and Chris Tiu showed up unexpectedly.

From 10 original participants, the PBA expanded the Shootout to a full-blown battle with each team represented by a competitor. The top three finishers in the first round advanced to the finals. Romeo, Yap and J. C. Intal tallied 18 apiece to move up, leaving behind Mark Macapagal with 16, Alapag 15, Nino Canaleta 15, Tiu 14, Tenorio 13, L. A. Revilla 10, Brian Heruela 10, Chris Banchero 9 and Santos 6.  In the final round, Romeo shot 18, Yap 14 and Intal 11.

Intal also participated in the Slam Dunk Contest with Melton, Rey Guevarra, Matt Ganuelas-Rosser and Aguilar. Melton and Guevarra tied for the crown last year. This time, the PBA made sure of a solo winner with a dunk-off. Guevarra figured in a dunk-off with Aguilar and captured the title, sealing it via an under-the-leg, mid-air reverse maneuver that merited 10s from the five judges – Blackwater team owner Dioceldo Sy, Ginebra PBA governor Alfrancis Chua, former PBA governor J. B. Baylon, Star writer Nelson Beltran and TV5’s Nikko Ramos.

The dunkers didn’t disappoint the jampacked crowd. Guevarra did incredible stunts, including jumping over Hugnatan seated on a chair to pluck the ball out of his palms raised over the head to slam it in with one hand. The other dunkers were also spectacular but not as exceptionally gravity-defying as Guevarra.