Sports: La Salle-Ateneo Dream
Game 2012: Green Over Blue
(Editor’s Note: This column published yesterday was inadvertently attributed to someone else due to a technical glitch. Our apologies.)
Last Sunday’s latest Dela Salle versus Ateneo exhibition game held at the Smart Araneta Coliseum which drew a sea of raucous green and blue crowd was won by the Green Archers alumni members led by Barako Bull Energy’s Don Allado via a resounding 13-point triumph.
The final score: 117-104 in favor of the Taft-based DLSU Green Archers alumni composed of current Philippine Basketball Association players mentored by now Air21 Express (formerly known as Shopinas.com Clickers) bench tactician and himself a true-blooded Archer in Coach Franz Pumaren.
On the other hand, the lineup of present PBA pros who donned the Blue Eagles uniform were led by Alaska’s prized pointguard, LA Tenorio with former San Miguel Beer Grand Slam coach and current Talk ‘N Text consultant Norman Black calling the shots for the Loyola-based ADMU alumni cagers.
The victory thus erased the Green Archers alumni’s painful one-point setback to the same opposition a few years back as well as the earlier 90-all standoff when the two sides met for the first time a couple of years ago highlighted by the Enrico Villanueva-Joseph Yeo altercation and the ensuing fight during that particular match.
In their third meeting, however, Dela Salle was the far better team as Ateneo played listlessly particularly in the second half with the Green Archers taking a huge 34-20 lead after the opening canto as well as another big 61-48 lead at the turn after Tenorio led the Eagles to a spirited rally at the start of the second quarter.
In fact, Ateneo came closer and trimmed DLSU’s lead to four, 48-44, before the Archers outscored their long-time rivals in a telling 13-4 closing run to end the first half of the match watched by thousands of basketball fans inside the Big Dome, mostly rooting for either sides.
The 6-6 Allado, who also played for B-Meg, Alaska, Talk ‘N Text and Air21 (the current Barako Bull) since being hired directly by the Uytengsu franchise in 1999, topscored for the Green Archers with 23 points while the Meralco Bolts’ Mac Cardona added 20 markers for the winners. DLSU led by 19 after the third period, 94-75.
Now 32 years old, Allado became the focal point of the DLSU offense right in the opening quarter and the “King Archer” even performed a Tebow/Tebowing-the act of getting down on knee and praying in the middle of a game which was popularized by Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow of the National Football League in the US, after scoring a basket while drawing a foul in the process in the second canto.
Likewise, the winning “Green” quintet of Coach Franz got 13 points from top rookie pick Jayvee Casio of Powerade and another 12 markers from Petron’s Carlo Sharma. The other scorers for DLSU were Ryan Arana of Rain or Shine (9 points), Petron’s Joseph Yeo (9), Air21’s Renren Ritualo (8), Ginebra’s Mike Cortez (8), the Express’ JR Aquino (3) and B-Meg’s Jerwin Gaco (3).
For the fancied “Blue” side, Black’s boys were led by Tenorio’s 20 as well as Villanueva’s 19 points while Japeth Aguilar of TNT (16), Tropang Texters teammate Larry Fonacier (14) and newcomer JC Intal of the Llamados (13) chipped in double figure scores in a losing cause.
Other former Ateneo de Manila University players who were fielded during the classic duel were Doug Kramer of the Tigers (7 points), Alaska’s Eric Salamat (4), Negrense Siverino Baclao of the Blaze Boosters (4), TNT’s Magnum Membrere (3) and Rich Alvarez (2) and the Aces’ Paolo Bugia (2).
Incidentally, the 2010 top freshman pick’s (Baclao) name is being dragged alongside last season’s No. 3 rookie selection and fellow Petron sophomore Rey Guevarra in another possible blockbuster trade involving Marcio Lassiter of Powerade pending PBA Commissioner Atty Chito Salud’s approval.*
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