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6th SEABA U18 Championship [May 1-5 Malaysia]

RP wins SEABA jr crown
from Manila Bulletin by kristel satumbaga

KUALA LUMPUR – The Nokia Philippine Youth team trounced Indonesia, 123-43, late Sunday night to wrap up the title in the Southeast Asia Basketball Association (SEABA) Championship for Junior Men crown with still one game left at the Malaysian Amateur Basketball Association gym here.


The Filipinos came out smoking and never let up to remain undefeated in three games in this five-nation, single round tournament.

The Filipinos try to formalize the championship late Monday when they meet Singapore for their last assignment.

Although it’s a remote possibility, a loss to the Singaporeans will still give the Philippines the crown.

The hosts carry a 2-1 record while Thailand has 2-2. Indonesia, made up of players from national juniors club champion Medan Sumatera Utanu Basketball Club, remained winless in three outings behind Singapore’s 1-2 slate.

The win also served as a sweet gift to the team’s benefactor, Jun Sy, who celebrated his 45th birthday Sunday.

It was a balanced performance for the Nationals with virtually anyone sent in to play scoring double figures. In fact, of 12 sent in, only four scored in single digits.

Jaypee Mendoza, an 18-year-old from Tarlac, led the Filipinos with 14 points from a perfect 7-of-7 field goal shooting while grabbing eight rebounds and making two steals.

"I think everybody contributed to this. We can’t just single out one player," RP Youth coach Franz Pumaren said. "It’s a collective effort because when you put somebody from the bench, they still contribute one way or another."

The Filipinos raced to a 10-0 start before slowly but surely increasing the pressure with shots from behind the arc.

By the end of the first period, the RP Youth had already nailed four booming treys from Joseph Tolentino, Ryan Garcia and Gabriel Banal.

The closest Indonesia could get was at 24-34 at the start of the second frame courtesy of its star player Rocky Chentra’s three-pointer. Chentra, however, was pulled out midway the period after dislocating his right shoulder from a bad fall.

The 17-year-old, 5-foot-8 shooting guard finished with 19 points in 20 minutes of action.

So confident was the RP squad that the players remained on the court during the halftime break as Pumaren abstained from the usual halftime huddle in the locker room with .

The Filipinos led, 65-26, at the turn.

"We still have high respect for the Indonesian team. They played with a big heart," Pumaren said.

"Consistency is our main thrust whether we play a strong or weak team in this tournament and in future competitions. We tried to play hard because there’s a tendency for us to relax and that should not be the case," he added.

The Filipinos converted 50 of their 103 attempts from the field for a 49 percent average. They put in 11 of their 33 triesd from downtown area. They also controlled the boards with 59 rebounds compared to Indonesia’s 33, and have 22 assists compared to their rivals’ four.

Indonesia’s 35 turnovers also contributed to their downfall.

Indonesian coach Agus Salim Lim praised the Filipinos’ talent and firepower.

"The Philippine team is very strong," Lim, whose team only trained for three weeks, said.
The scores:

NOKIA RP YOUTH 143 — Mendoza 14, Pascual 13, Banal 13, Torres 12, Garcia 11, Sangalang 11, Marata 11, Manguera 10, Terso 8, Tolentino 8, Golla 6, De Guzman 6.

INDONESIA 43 — Chentra 19, Gozali 11, Ang 5, Sofian 2, Teddy 2, Suwandy 2, Fahmi 2, Herbert 0, Tanadi 0, Utama 0, Wirhendy 0, Wijaya 0.

Quarters: 34-21, 65-26, 95-32, 123-43.
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The Indonesian's just trained for 3 weeks, they didn't stand a chance.

Next stop U18 Asia-FIBA in Iran, way to go Team Philippines.
 
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RP Youth crowned SEABA champs (From Philstar.com)

KUALA LUMPUR – The real challenge now beckons for the Nokia RP Youth team after expectedly dominating the regional championship here.

Powerhouse teams from all over Asia now await the Philippines after its triumphant return to the SEABA junior men championship, capping a four-game sweep with a 96-55 demolition of Singapore at the MABA gym here Monday.

The RP juniors topped the five-nation tourney in fiery fashion, clobbering the opposition by a whopping average margin of 42.2 points.

With their domination of the field, the RP juniors gained the lion’s share of individual honors during the awards rites. Norberto Torres was named Most Valuable Player, Mark Joel de Guzman Best Defensive Player and Franz Pumaren the Best Coach.

But as the RP squad savored the victory, the real test looms in four months when the Nationals face teams like China, South Korea, Iran and Qatar.

The RP juniors take a trip to Tehran, Iran in September in search of the crown the country has never won in almost three decades now.

It has all been a frustrating run for the Philippines in this biennial tourney for boys 18 years old and under since the Hector Calma-led 1981 RP team triumphed at home turf.

“It’s going to be hard but I don’t think it’s impossible,” said coach Franz Pumaren, hopeful they can pull off the feat in the Iran joust where the top two teams gain the right to represent the region in the 2009 World Youth Championship in New Zealand.

“In terms of the level of competition, I think we can compete. I just hope they’re (the opposition) not too big,” Pumaren said.

“We’re now going to the Asian level. Our goal is not to win just one game but to represent the country well and play above expectation,” said Tao Corp. president Jun Sy, the chief benefactor of the team.

Pumaren said the team is taking a rest in the next two to three weeks before going back to work most possibly with the addition of two to three new players in the pool.

“The boys are now in pretty good shape but we’ve seen in this tourney that we have players who can’t compete with taller rivals,” said Pumaren, now looking to beef up his team with one more big guy and one or two solid wingmen.

Torres had recommended a pal in Toronto, Canada. Pumaren said the player is a tremendous shooter but he’s more interested to play in the US NCAA Division I school.

The players under the Nokia RP Youth pool have all made full commitment to the program, agreeing to skip the coming varsity season which runs smack with the Asian championship.

“I’m proud of the boys because they’re sacrificing a lot for this. The team is starting to get together because they believe we’re going to do the program right. Remember they come from different places, from different backgrounds, but Franz has molded them into one team that trust each other,” said Sy.

Zamboanga native and FEU pointguard Ryan Roose Garcia went 2-of-3 from beyond the arc and totaled 16 points to pace the RP juniors who also drew double-digit outputs from De Guzman, Kyle Pascual and Tata Marata.

NOTES: American coach Felton Sealy, who has called the shots for several teams in the region, cautioned the Philippine team to be ready to play against much older players in the Asian championship. “It came from him that there are many ineligible players playing in the FIBA-Asia youth championship,” said coach Franz Pumaren, who had a brief chat with Sealy during the closing ceremony…A day after team leader Jun Sy announced a Bangkok holiday for the team, SBP executive director Patrick Gregorio had his own announcement in behalf of federation president Manny Pangilinan, promising to give the players extra pocket money in their Bangkok trip.

The scores:

Nokia RP 96 – Garcia 16, De Guzman 14, Pascual 12,Marata 10, Torres 9, Golla 8, Tolentino 7, Banal 6, Sangalang 6, Manguera 4, Mendoza 4, Terso 0.

Singapore 55 – Sheng 16, Chong 10, Calvin 6, Jia R. 6, Wei 4, Boon 4, Soon 4, Siang 2, Jia W. 2, Clarence 1.

Quarterscores: 35-10, 52-31, 77-36, 96-55
 
tedsulit said:
Torres had recommended a pal in Toronto, Canada. Pumaren said the player is a tremendous shooter but he’s more interested to play in the US NCAA Division I school.
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I think this is the 6'1" guard. I think someone posted his pic here before

tedsulit said:
NOTES: American coach Felton Sealy, who has called the shots for several teams in the region, cautioned the Philippine team to be ready to play against much older players in the Asian championship. “It came from him that there are many ineligible players playing in the FIBA-Asia youth championship,” said coach Franz Pumaren, who had a brief chat with Sealy during the closing ceremony.
Click to expand...

Can FIBA inspect these players? I think it'd be a hindrance for our conquest of the FIBA U18 crown.
 
Coke_Hero said:
I think this is the 6'1" guard. I think someone posted his pic here before


It must be Mathew Wright!!

BTW Naismithmyman - I don't think FIL ACT is the premier Filipino league in GTA (Greater Toronto Area)
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Coke_Hero said:
I think this is the 6'1" guard. I think someone posted his pic here before



Can FIBA inspect these players? I think it'd be a hindrance for our conquest of the FIBA U18 crown.
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Sadly, the last time we won the Asian youth championship in '81, we also fielded "mature" players.
 
kingtut11 said:
Coke_Hero said:
I think this is the 6'1" guard. I think someone posted his pic here before
It must be Mathew Wright!!

BTW Naismithmyman - I don't think FIL ACT is the premier Filipino league in GTA (Greater Toronto Area)
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FIL-ACT is just one of the fil-can clubs that run regular fil-can tournaments in the GTA. The other clubs are PHYBA, MPAA, PHILCAN, and NABA-GTA. These tournaments are played on the weekend (Sat&Sun) starting in December and it ends in Apr-May. During the summertime, fil-can clubs run their own house leagues for their own members.

Pinoys with more talents also play in school tournaments and in OBA tournaments (Ontario Basketball Association). OBA is run by Basketball Ontario from Jan-May and this is where you see a lot of black players. Some pinoys are also in AAU teams that play AAU tournaments.

I think it would be nice if the Nokia RP Youth team can also visit Toronto and play against fil-can select ballers. Toronto is not just a hockey city where the Hockey Hall of Fame is located. It is also a basketball city that is home to the Toronto Raptors so I'm sure they will not be disappointed.

Cheers! :)
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Wow. Norbert Torres was named MVP. He must've impressed enough people out there during the tournament. His numbers weren't really that high, but I felt he came thru during the team's toughest games against Malaysia & Thailand.
 
Just a comment on Joel De Guzman: I first noticed him play in the PBL a month or so ago, & although he wasn't going great guns then, you sort of easily notice him because he is the flashy type of player. Good height, good ballhandling, very nice to watch him go one on one against defenders coming in from the outside.

The problem was he wasn't making his shots then. I figured he might step up after a couple of weeks of play. He has stepped up of sorts lately, but has been a bit inconsistent. Had some good games, & had some bad games. I think he lacks the spring to be as effective as, say Menor, or Baguio. Am comparing him to those, since he is that type of a flashy, one on one player.
 
rpyouth.jpg


nortorres.jpg

Norberto Torres receives MVP Trophy
 
The NOKIA RP Youth Team will participate in the Nike Summer League and Liga Pilipinas.

I only get to see highlights in the news (NBN). Hopefully this time the full game itself.

:)
 
The RP-Youth Team will be going up against FEATI this Friday, May 9, 2007 at 2:30 pm over at the FEU Gym.
 
passfirstguard said:
with those leagues, is the team fielding its current roster or will they add new players?:)
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they'll field all 15 players and if they find anyone new, im sure bigote will just add him up.
 
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