Villanueva Magnolia’s PBL top pick

Magnolia completed a casting coup as it grabbed two of the finest UAAP players during yesterday’s PBL Rookie Draft even as team manager Peter Martin announced their new tie-up with NCAA champion San Beda for the coming Silver Cup.

Already a power to reckon with after getting the core of the Red Lions, Magnolia expectedly made Jonas Villanueva of Far Eastern University as the overall top pick and University of the East top gunner Bonbon Custodio the No. 3 pick, thus making the Spinners the team to beat in the season-opening tournament.

Villanueva and Custodio will thus play along with San Beda’s Alex Angeles, John Paul Escobal, Reigo Gamalinda, Kevin Ray Espinosa, Jed Micah Evangelista, Rogemar Menor, Kristoffer Taupa, Eduardo Tecson, Jay Taganas and possibly the 6-foot-8 Samuel Ekwe.

Magnolia also boasts of Jeff Chan, another star player from FEU who can play both inside and outside with dexterity.

Martin, however, stressed that their tie-up with San Beda is only for a two-year program since FEU is still in the rebuilding stage. FEU disbanded its squad following a disappointing showing in the recent UAAP tournament.

"Most of the FEU players are new, they’re not yet eligible to play in the PBL that’s why we’re tapping the services of San Beda players," said Chito Loyzaga, PBL chairman and San Miguel Corporation representative to the board.

The Spinners also surprised the other participating teams when they picked Japeth Aguilar in the second round of the dispersal draft. Aguilar is reportedly playing for western Kentucky, a Division I school in the US NCAA.