The Blitz King

One of the privileges of being on the road is being there are the creation of new folk heroes. Covering sports out of town allows us to see firsthand the birth of local legends, which is becoming a more and more common occurrence in the MBA.

There is an abundance of examples. Sta. Lucia Realtor Felix Belano, who grew up just outside of Davao, stepped into the big shoes of Eugene Quilban in the MBA’s second season in 1999. He became the first player in league history to register a quadruple double, and now wears number 42 to commemorate his feat (4 for quadruple, 2 for double).

LBC Batangas Blades forward Eddie Laure always dreamed of being a professional basketball player as a child in Zamboanga. After years of consistently outworking all the players around him, he suited up for Dipolog and other delegations in the Palarong Pambansa. As an emerging star for Adamson University in the UAAP, Laure tasted poverty and hardship alone in the big city. After his first season with the Blades, he became the object of a recruiting war between PBA and MBA teams. Today, he is a bona fide star, and a legend back home.

There are other hopefuls following in their footsteps. Rodel Mapalad is somewhat of a playground legend in community basketball leagues in Batangas. He is now a rookie with the Blades, and doesn’t see much playing time, but the crowds at De La Salle Lipa chant for coach Nash Racela to put him in the game.

Peter Simon is a do-it-all 6-foot point guard who can play the 1, 2 or 3 spots. Snatched by the Davao Eagles as one of a platoon of rookies on the rebuilt team, Simon has exploded in his first ten games, often scoring in the 20’s. A gifted leaper and improving passer, Simon just needs a little more polish to become a big-name star.

But perhaps the player who is just now getting his share of the spotlight is Ruben dela Rosa of the Negros Slashers. An explosive and formerly erratic offensive player, the former Manila Metrostar is now reaping new accolades as the MBA’s premier fastbreak finisher.

Dela Rosa was never that well known in college. In fact, he was often referred to as Romy dela Rosa’s younger brother. But he was always a strong jumper and outstanding sprinter, ranked nationally in track and field as a collegian. He earned his big break when, like Vergel Meneses before him, he upstaged his more recognized rivals in a slam dunk contest.

The occasion was the Magic Johnson-Kareem Abdul-Jabbar tour at the Araneta Coliseum. Each of the retired Laker stars formed ragtag teams of college and marginal pro players to play against each other. At halftime, they held a dunking contest, and Ruben promptly stole the show with a couple of gravity-defying highlights.

His first season with the Manila Metrostars was not so remarkable. In fact, he received minimal playing time when Manila copped its MBA title the following season, 1999. In fact, the times he did get onto the court, he would get so jumpy he’d flub unmolested lay-ups and lose the ball on the fastbreak.

Then he moved to the Negros Slashers, perhaps the best running team in the league, and played alongside his Kuya Romy. It was a perfect fit. Playing shooting guard and small forward, dela Rosa was mostly at the front end of Negros’ fearsome blitzkriegs, often finishing off with a breathtaking slam.

This season has seen him boost his stock even further with the implementation of the league’s new Blitz Three rule. Now, home-made posters in Bacolod proclaim him the MBA’s Blitz King. And it was never more evident than in their home game against the Laguna Lakers three Fridays ago.

The bigger Lakers had led all the way, hoping to deal the southern champion Slashers their first home loss of the season. With three minutes to go, Laguna was up by 9 and had momentum. It looked bad for Negros.

"Even I thought it was over," confesses head coach Robert Sison. "But Ruben saved us."

Dela Rosa scored on three Blitz Three’s, even getting fouled on one of them. That brought the league’s loudest crowd back into the game, and rattled the Lakers.

His averages of 13 points, 5 rebounds and astonishing 57% field goal shooting coupled with 2 steals a game have made him an impact player, and a safety valve of Negros’ campaign to finally bring an MBA crown to the south.

It all goes to show that, if you stick to what you love, the rest will follow. And, as in the case of Ruben dela Rosa, it may include a coronation as Blitz King of the MBA.