Ateneo sweeps UAAP Season 77 HS Basketball first round

Standings

Ateneo 7-0
NU 6-1
La Salle-Zobel 5-2
FEU 4-3
Adamson 3-4
UST 2-5
UPIS 1-6
UE 0-7

Games Jan. 7 at the Blue Eagle Gym

9 a.m. – FEU vs UE
11 a.m. – NU vs UST
1 p.m. – DLSZ vs UPIS
3 p.m. – ADMU vs AdU

The Ateneo de Manila Blue Eaglets relied on their youth team standouts to end the 22-game winning streak of the defending champion National University Bullpups, 66-64, this past Saturday at the Blue Eagle Gym.

Mike Nieto received the pass from twin brother Matthew, then scored the game-winning lay-up with 2.5 seconds remaining to break the final deadlock. The twins combined to score 23 points.

Via @katelynneys_, the @bigmikenieto game-winner. @mattnieto5 dished it -> https://t.co/T26zBPNR89
— PHSports LiveScores (@LiveScoresPH) December 20, 2014

Matthew scored eight of his fifteen markers in the fourth quarter, all of which came in a span of 50 seconds, to give Ateneo the lead for good.

The defending champions did manage to crawl their way back in the game, capped off by a Philip Manalang triple with seventeen seconds remaining to set up Mike's heroics.

NU did have a chance to win the game, but Alfred Calma's corner triple missed.

Jolo Mendoza led all scorers with twenty points, while Mark Dyke had nineteen points and sixteen rebounds.

In a battle to see who finishes in third place after the first round, La Salle-Zobel escaped past FEU-Diliman, 55-50.

After Marvin Lee tied the game at 50-all with 82 seconds left, the Junior Archers managed to survive with free throws from Aljun Melencio, Joaquin Banzon, and Brent Paraiso, while the Baby Tamaraws squandered their chance to come closer with a couple of turnovers.

Melencio and Banzon each led Zobel with eighteen points, while Lee finished with twelve to guide FEU-D.

The other match-ups on Saturday ended with Adamson over UPIS, 56-50, and UST over UE, 77-65.

Second round action will kick off on January 7 after the holiday break.

PBA All-Filipino Cup semifinals set

Alin kina Jeff, Calvin, Chris, at Jayson ang magwawagi sa All-Filipino Cup?

With the demise of the Purefoods-STAR Hotshots in Phase I of the All-Filipino Cup quarterfinals, the PBA will have a new champion at the end of the first conference.

Four teams are still left standing, and have the right to be the first champion of the 40th season of the first professional basketball league in Asia.

Kicking off the best-of-seven semifinals is the match-up of 2nd seed Rain or Shine and 3rd seed Alaska.

Lone eliminations meeting ended 98-95 for Rain or Shine.

Schedule:

Game 1: December 18, 7pm
Game 2: December 20, 5pm
Game 3: December 22, 7pm
Game 4: December 25, 415pm

The Elastopainters are seeking their first All-Filipino title and have done so in spite of injuries affecting their rotation depth, from Chris Tiu and Ty Tang to rookie Jericho Cruz. However, Yeng Guiao has relied on the Elasto-Gilas quartet of Gabe Norwood, Jeff Chan, Beau Belga, and Paul Lee to become the first team to snag a semifinal berth (although tiebreakers pushed them down to second).

The Aces, on the other hand, have ridden on the shoulders of Calvin Abueva, who is second in the league in the Best Player of the Conference race. Calvin is the "face" of the Aces' seeming grit-grind mentality, with Chris Ross being the only significant PBA player of note with a better defensive rating than the Beast.

Rain or Shine takes pride on their league-best pace, while Alaska puts its lunch bucket on their capable rebounding percentage and their defense (tied with San Miguel in best defensive rating).

Set to take place tomorrow is the other semifinal pairing between the top-seed San Miguel Beer and 4th seed Talk 'N Text.

Lone eliminations meeting ended 107-101 for Talk 'N Text.

Schedule:

Game 1: December 19, 7pm
Game 2: December 21, 5pm
Game 3: December 23, 7pm
Game 4: December 26, 7pm

Head coach Leo Austria's didn't stray away from what worked for him in Adamson and with the ABL version of San Miguel Beer. The Beermen play with the slowest pace among the four teams left in the running, opting to use his biggest weapon, reigning MVP JuneMar Fajardo, to his advantage. Along with the Aces, the Beermen have the best defensive rating in the league as well as the best eFG% defense. Of course, they decided to add a new wrinkle with the late addition of ertswhile Beerman Alex Cabagnot from Globalport.

Meanwhile, the Tropang Texters decided to rebuild on the fly, keeping the core intact, while going out and netting themselves two members of the cadet pool in Kevin Alas and Matt Ganuelas-Rosser. They have an average defensive rating, but what gets them going is their offense, with a 104.6 rating. Keying this version of the DDrM is Jayson Castro, while gunners like Larry Fonacier and Jimmy Alapag lie waiting in the wings to lead the sniping brigade from the perimeter.

TV5 will televise the games, while NewsFM (92.3 in Manila, 101.9 in Cebu and Davao, 102.3 in Bacolod, and 97.5 in General Santos) will have radio broadcast. Sports5.ph offers legitimate online streaming (albeit geo-locked to the Philippines) of the games, as well as certain exclusives that neither TV or radio will have coverage on.

Six-man Philippine delegation sent to Geneva for FIBA workshop

In its quest to secure hosting rights for the upcoming FIBA World Cup in 2019, the Philippines will send a six-man delegation to Geneva to attend a workshop on December 15 and 16.

Comprising the delegation are Department of Tourism Undersecretary and Chief Operation Officer Domingo Ramon Enerio III (as the proxy for DOT Secretary Ramon Jimenez), current Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas Executive Director Sonny Barrios, SBP Deputy Executive Director for International Affairs Buth Antonio, SBP logistics consultant Andrew Teh, PBA chairman Pato Gregorio, and Octagon Asia-Pacific (a Sydney, Australia-based sports marketing and advertising firm) President Sean Nicholls.

DOT Secretary Ramon Jimenez, who saw the potential benefits of the hosting the World Cup for Philippine tourism, sent Enerio to be part of the delegation after meeting with the SBP officials.

According to Barrios, the delegation aims to put its "best foot forward" in the workshop, noting that the presence of Enerio and Nicholls is a context towards the "seriousness of our bid."

SBP Vice Chairman Ricky Vargas echoed said sentiments, adding that "we will be there to win it."

The FIBA Basketball World Cup Bid Workshop is the second step for those intending to bid for hosting rights, after initially expressing interest. Aside from the Philippines, recent FIFA World Cup and incoming Summer Olympic hosts Brazil has made its interest to host the 2019 edition public.

On-site inspection will then follow suit this January, with the final submission of candidacy to be done in April. By May, candidates will make their final bid presentations, to which the FIBA Central Board would then announce the winner.

Three possible venues are already available for FIBA inspection, the Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City, the MOA Arena in Pasay City, and the Philippine Arena in Bocaue. A couple more possible sites currently being looked into are the facilities in Cebu by the SM Group and Paranaque City by the Solaire Group.

Partnership established with the NBA and the Royal Foundation

#460170704 / gettyimages.com

The NBA and the Royal Foundation announced on Monday that both sides will engage a partnership involving the league's NBA Cares program with the Foundation's United for Wildlife and Coach Core programs.

The partnership aims to raise awareness on the importance of international wildlife conservation, develop the next generation of conservation leaders, and grow the game of basketball. To highlight that partnership, Prince William and Dutchess Catherine (better known to everyone as Kate Middleton) attended the game between the Brooklyn Nets and the Cleveland Cavaliers at the Barclays Center on Tuesday.

For wildlife conservation, the league has previously teamed up with WildAid, producing ads like this one below.



With United for Wildlife, the league has named Serge Ibaka, Al Horford, and NBA legend Dikembe Mutombo as its ambassadors, joining the likes of David Beckham, Andy Murray, Lewis Hamilton, and NBA legend Yao Ming. Mutombo accompanied the Royal Couple at the Barclays Center during the game. As ambassadors, they will join Prince William to rally towards "a global movement for change and to preserve nature."

With Coach Core, the league will support the program in its initiative of helping the youth to develop the skills, experience, and confidence to become the next generation of inspirational coaches. In line with that, the NBA will provide logistical support and coaching experience. In addition, with the New York Knicks playing in London for the NBA Global Games against the Milwaukee Bucks next year at the O2 Arena, Carmelo Anthony will grace a Coach Core graduation event on January 14.

The NBA Store in the Philippines finally opens on December 6

NBA Store in Glorietta 3. (photo from the NBA)

After a long wait, the largest NBA Store outside the United States and the first in Southeast Asia will open this Saturday, December 6.

Located at Glorietta 3 inside the Ayala Center in Makati, the store will take up over a thousand square meters of space covering two floors. Three-time NBA All-Star and current NBA TV analyst Rip Hamilton will be present to grace the opening and meet with fans.

The NBA Store will have merchandise from all 30 teams, as well as a comprehensive assortment of NBA products that includes Adidas apparel and footwear (Adidas is the NBA's official outfitter) and personalized jersey services. It will also have an interactive zone, where fans can hone their NBA 2K skills, or measure themselves against their favorite players. There are also items in the store that cannot be bought anywhere else in the country.

NBA Asia Senior VP and Managing Director Scott Levy found it fitting that the Philippines will be hosting the largest NBA Store outside of the United States, highlighting the Filipinos' passion and excitement for the NBA, whether it is through TV, social and digital media, events, and at the NBA Cafe. He adds that this is an opportunity for fans to proudly express their loyalty to their favorite NBA teams / players.

International Athletic Trading Company, Inc. (IATC) will manage the Philippines' NBA Store, and its President and CEO, Melvin Lloyd Lim, is excited to be working with the league in opening this one-of-a-kind store. Lim sees this store not only as the place to get the widest range of NBA merchandise, but also as a destination point for future NBA activities in the basketball-mad country.

To commemorate the opening, the first 300 visitors to the NBA Store will be getting special perks, including the chance to meet with Hamilton, as well as have opportunity to snag limited edition footwear, NBA Store GCs, and other NBA merchandise