Slammin' KG reigns anew; Mac rules arc

PUERTO PRINCESA , Philippines  – Derby Ace’s KG Canaleta soared into space in a superlative demonstration of power and artistry to top a high-caliber field in the 2010 PBA All-Star slam dunk contest at the Puerto Princesa Coliseum here last night.

Grace prevailed over power as Canaleta beat Sta. Lucia’s Kelly Williams to reclaim the crown he lost to Rain or Shine’s Gabe Norwood in Manila last year.

Norwood took a shot at back-to-back championships but failed to make it past the elimination round, getting poor scores on his off-tempo executions.

Also out after the eliminations were former PBL slam dunk champion JC Intal and energetic Derby Ace rookie Rico Maierhofer.

“This win is meaningful because I got it in a contest featuring a real high-powered cast. Kelly was so great that I felt tremendous pressure,” said Canaleta.

The 6-foot-4 forward out of University of the East soared past three Derby Ace ball boys and elegantly finished it with a right-handed dunk to beat Williams in the slam-off.

He did practically the same routine in two earlier rounds – the first over one man then the second over two men. He drew perfect 50 points on each stuff.

“I couldn’t think of other tricks anymore because of the great dunks by Williams. So I just extended my fly,” said Canaleta, now a four-time slam dunk king, following earlier triumphs in 2005-2007.

Will he go for a fifth championship next year? He said: “It’s hard to say. Let’s wait and see. Maybe, I take a shot at the three-point shootout.”

His teammate James Yap was dethroned as three-point king, taking a big fall from champion last year to dead last in a field of 10 this year.

Coca-Cola’s Mark Macapagal emerged as the new champion, ruling a forgettable competition.

Macapagal had a poor winning score of 13, beating Jeff Chan by one and Yousif Aljamal by two in the finals.

Macapagal made 17, Chan 16 and Aljamal 19 in the elimination round, beating previous champions Renren Ritualo (14), Ronald Tubid (14), Dondon Hontiveros (13), Jimmy Alapag (13) and Yap as well as Willie Miller (12) and Josh Urbiztondo (13).

“I can’t believe I was there in the middle of the court holding the championship plaque,” said Macapagal.

“I was expecting James, Dondon and Jimmy to slug it out for the championship. I would be happy finishing fifth,” Macapagal added.

San Miguel’s Jonas Villanueva also took the spotlight in Day One of the 2010 PBA All-Star festivities, reigning supreme in the Obstacle Challenge.

Villanueva was fastest in doing the tricks, clocking 31.7 seconds to Willie Miller’s 34 and Ronjay Buenafe’s 37.

Failing to make it past the elims were Cyrus Baguio (39.8 seconds), Jojo Duncil (40), Sol Mercado (43), Urbiztondo (44), Jared Dillinger (46), Chris Ross (57) and title-holder Paul Artadi (57.1).

Artadi finished dead last on an error-strewn performance. He got off to a bad start, missing an opening shot as he opted for a dunk instead of a simple layup.

The Derby Ace guard failed to recover, fumbling his way to the finish.

To cap the All-Star Friday, Chan poured in 27 points and Mark Yee piled up 24 to lead the Sophomores to a 106-87 rout of the Rookies in the Blitz Game.