Bataan coach Jojo Lastimosa ready for MPBL showdown with San Juan

MANILA, Philippines – By Monday’s end, the San Juan Knights and the Bataan Risers will part ways. Two of the best teams in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League clash in a huge match on Monday night at the Bataan People’s Center.

The Knights, riding the crest of a four-game win streak, tout a 14-3 record while the home team, Bataan, sports a 14-1 slate.

San Juan has a loaded lineup with Aaron Jeruta, the sweet-shooting guard out of Centro Escolar University, former Letran stud Jam Cortes, former Mapua Cardinal CJ Isit, former JRU Heavy Bomber Jordan Rios, former pros JM Wilson, Larry Rodriguez and Mark Cardona.

“They have a good team but so do we,” pointed out Risers coach Jojo Lastimosa.  

Lastimosa spoke about the game and its implications on the eve of the match.

“My boys are up to the task and we play not because of our reputations but because we are a team,” he added.

Bataan will be led by former pros (and Gilas Pilipinas player) Gary David, Robbie Celiz, Byron Villarias and Pamboy Raymundo. There are current Gilas cadets Vince Tolentino and Jayjay Alejandro, college standouts like former UST center Jeepy Faundo and Perpetual Help Alta Gab Daganon and their tough corps of forward-centers in Alfred Batino (a former teammate of Jeruta with the CEU Scorpions), Al Carlos and Bernie Bregondo, who has picked up his game.

“It is a big game. No doubt about it,” succinctly put the Philippine basketball great. “While we know San Juan is a top team, we prepare for them no differently from Bacoor or Gen San. I try to instill in my team that this team is a team we get up for and this team we can beat easily. No. We play everyone hard. We just need to beat and play everyone. I don’t want to place too much pressure on the boys. It is not a life-and-death situation as the Datu Cup is still a long way from done. It would be nice to get a win. But whatever happens after tonight, we move on and continue our march to get better and try to win a championship.”

The Risers are the hottest team in the MPBL with a record 14-match win streak in the young MPBL league. Is the pressure mounting for Bataan considering there is a streak to keep alive and they are playing at home?

“I always tell them the boys that we have no past, no accomplishments, and no trophies yet,” explained Lastimosa. “A win streak means nothing if you do not win a championship. It sounds good but we don’t want to be the answer to a trivia question about streaks. So the message I reiterate is ‘focus on the now.’”

The match is one of the last two matches that Faundo and Alejandro will most likely play for the Risers as they are going to the upcoming PBA Draft. While Bataan will have Richard Escoto in uniform for his second game with the squad, they are hoping that Barkley Eboña will be cleared soon so he can play.”

“As of now, we are waiting for the UAAP Board to meet so we can secure the clearance for Eboña to play,” bared the Bataan coach. “We so not want to jeopardize his last year of eligibility for FEU in the UAAP so we do things by the book.”

“We are also hoping to add a third player after Escoto and Eboña. Although we expect the other Risers to step up in the place of Jayjay, it would be nice to get a bit more reinforcement,” summed up the coach. “We will finalize things soon.”