Nationals humble NBA Legends

Team Philippines dazzled the Dennis Rodman-led USA Legends with speed and outside shooting as it pulled off a 110-102 victory last night in the "Bad Boy Tour" at the Araneta Coliseum.

Rodman, the controversial former NBA rebound king, showed some semblance of his old self and was easily the most popular among the members of visiting squad led by former NBA stars.

He logged in 16 rebounds, three assists and two points in 39 minutes.

But it was the high-leaping, athletic pair of Olu Famutimi and Myron Allen, however, which drew the "Ooohs" and "Aaahs" from the crowd with their acrobatic thrusts and aerial forays.

The two ended up with combined 74 but these were negated by the Nationals’ balanced scoring with Dondon Hontiveros exploding for 31 points including a triple in the stretch that eventually did the Legends in.

" It’s good for the Filipino basketball public. It reinforced the fact that there is a national basketball team and all we need is to get the opportunity to play," said RP team coach Chot Reyes.

The Nationals raced to an 18-11 start, held on the initiative at 52-48, lost it for a time late in the second quarter before Hontiveros wrested a 52-51 edge for the RP team going into the break.

The Americans ended their series with one win and one loss, posting an easy 124-94 win over the San Miguel All-Stars in Mandaue City last Thursday.