IT was supposed to be a battle royale—the perennial king of high school hoops versus the emerging power from Binondo.
However, the Chiang Kai Shek College (CKSC) Blue Dragons made the finals of the Metro Manila Basketball League (MMBL) a thoroughly one-sided affair with an 80-62 demolition of San Beda recently in the Red Cubs’ own gym in Mendiola in front of disbelieving eyes.
CKSC, behind one of the top high school players in the country in John Galinato, got going from the opening tip and never allowed the home team to tie, much less taste the lead in the third oldest high school league in the country—after the National Collegiate Athletic Association and University Athletic Association of the Philippines.
The Blue Dragons took the opening quarter, 25-8, and never looked back.
“We jumped the gun on them,” modestly assessed Galinato, who tallied a game-high 19 points to go with one rebound, one steal and one assist.
“I’m so happy that we won the championship,” CKSC Head Coach Goldwin Monteverde said. “Seeing the boys work hard and bouncing back from a loss to San Beda last December [in another tournament].”
CKSC’s Jason Celis and EJ Agbong added 17 and 14 points, respectively, to their title-winning effort.
The Red Cubs’ usual statistical leaders—Even Nelle, Germy Mahinay and Addy Velasquez—were surprisingly non-factors.
Nelle, who has made almost every Mythical Five selection in the NCAA and pre- and post-season leagues with his all-around high impact play, saw action for only 19 minutes. He finished with only two points and four assists. He fouled out early in the match.
Mahinay, the starting center for San Beda, scored two points in 12 mostly unproductive minutes, while Velasquez played only three minutes and did not score.
San Beda was led by Ain Obenza with 13 points. Robi Nayve added 12 while Prince Etrata scored 10 points.
San Beda owned the boards and were nearly even with CKSC in assists, 13-14, but they couldn’t translate those into an advantage.
The Blue Dragons’ relentless attack inside the lane saw them troop to the free throw line 27 times (where they only hit 15 free throws). In stark contrast, San Beda without much of an inside presence, opted to shoot from three-point range, a usual strength, where they only hit 8-of-28 three-point attempts. CKSC shot 46 percent of their field goals while SBC was a poor 36 percent.
The Blue Dragons’ first MMBL crown also came at the expense of San Beda in 2015 with a Red Cubs squad that bannered Andrei Caracut, Norrish DeCapia, and Chami Diputado. CKSC then featured JV Gallego, Fran Yu, Shannon Gagate and Jonas Tibayan.
The MMBL was sponsored by Darlington, Petron, Freego, Chooks To Go, Cherifer, Molten and Oishi.
The SM-National Basketball Training Center National High School Championships will be played from March 18 to 23 at the MOA Arena in Pasay City.