11 named to national basketball hall of fame

The 11 nominees in this year’s National Basketball Hall of Fame induction ceremony earned their place in the pantheon by doing the country proud with their exemplary performance during their heyday.

Briefly, in no special order, are the major exploits of some of the nominees:

• Gerry Cruz. 1959 Chile World Basketball Championship, 8th place; 1960 Rome Olympics, 11th, two gold medals, Asian Games (1958 Tokyo, 1962 Jakarta); and gold medal, 1963 ABC in Taipei. Born in Betis, Guagua, Pampanga, tall and handsome Gerry grew to about 6-foot-2 to become a star player of Betis Elementary School, Guagua National High and Far Eastern University, where, in his rookie year, the Tamaraws won the UAAP title. He was recruited by the Ysmael Steel Admirals, many-time MICAA and National Open champions from 1956 to 1964. In 1959, Gerry was invited to play for the University of San Francisco Dons, but he returned home after only two months of training because he was treated unfairly and shabbily. He retired in 1964 due to a bad knee injury.

• Eddie Decena. 1948 London Olympic Games, 12th place. He became a household name when he was voted Most Valuable Player of the NCAA in 1947 as a member of La Salle’s fabulous Green Archers, the first NCAA post-war champions. The following year, Decena was chosen to carry the colors in the London Olympics. In October 1948, he played for the Philippine quintet against the visiting Oakland Bittners from the United States. In that exhibition game, Decena hurt his knee, leading to an early retirement. He finished his college education at La Salle in 1951, graduating with a degree in commerce, major in accounting. Born on Jan. 14, 1926, Decena was enshrined in La Salle’s Hall of Fame on March 5, 1995.

• Eddie Lim. 1959 Chile World Basketball Championship, 8th place; 1952 Helsinki Olympic Games, 9th place; 1956 Melbourne Olympics, 7th; two gold medals in Asian Games (1954 Manila, 1958 Tokyo); and gold, 1960 Manila ABC. Born on Oct. 13, 1930, Lim was a good player like fellow San Beda Red Lions and Hall of Famers Carlos Loyzaga and Antonio Genato. He was a formidable guard who earned the monicker "Stonewall" from legendary sportscaster Willie Hernandez. He sparked San Beda to the NCAA championships in 1951-52 and the National Open tournament, also in 1952. In the MICAA, Lim played a key role for multi-titled YCO that won the National Open crown a record seven straight time under coaches Leo Prieto and the late Tito Eduque.

• Luis "Moro" Lorenzo. Gold medal, 1951 New Delhi Asian Games. An all-around athlete, Moro Lorenzo also played tennis and football, aside from being a member of the Ateneo track and field team from 1948 to 1951. An eagle-eyed shooter who averaged from 30 to 35 points per game, Lorenzo was named Mr. Basketball by the Philippine Sportswriters Association during its inaugural PSA Awards Night on April 15, 1950. He was the undisputed scoring machine of the Ateneo Blue Eagles from 1948 to 1951, winning several NCAA MVP awards in the process. The star forward of the Philippine team that won the 1951 Asian Games championship in New Delhi, Lorenzo was the skipper of Philippine Airlines that captured the MICAA title in 1952-53.