Winning off the court

Terrafirma is dead last in the PBA Commissioner’s Cup standings with a 1-9 record and two games left in its elimination schedule. The Dyip is out of contention for a playoff ticket but coach Johnedel Cardel’s squad is still fighting no matter what. Last Friday, Terrafirma ended a 25-game losing streak by gutting out a gritty 124-114 OT win over NLEX at the Smart Araneta Coliseum with Lester Prosper hitting seven of his 50 points and Alex Cabagnot delivering three assists in extension.

When Terrafirma blew a 17-point third quarter lead and it went to OT, Cardel refused to give up. None of the Dyip wanted to lose. Cardel deployed a three-guard lineup with Cabagnot, Gelo Alolino and Juami Tiongson backstopping Dre Cahilig and Prosper then rolled the dice. Tiongson and Alolino committed two turnovers each in the fourth period while Cahilig muffed an easy layup to leave the door open for NLEX to bounce back. Instead of barking at his players for the miscues, Cardel showed his trust by keeping them on the floor. As it turned out, Cahilig iced the contest with back-to-back baskets off Cabagnot passes.

“I’ve never given up on my players and coaches,” said PBA vice chairman and Terrafirma governor Bobby Rosales. “It is unfortunate that our team was saddled with injuries which proved to be costly to our campaign. But we give no excuses for our dismal performance. We will just continue to persevere and try harder. That first win after a long losing streak should relieve the pressure off the backs of the players. If there is anything what that win proves, it is that the team is capable of winning. There’s no guarantee that you can win every game. But you start with believing that you can win. We look forward to better days.”

Terrafirma returns to action against San Miguel Beer at the PhilSports Arena today then faces Phoenix to wind up its assignments, also at the Arena on Sunday. Prosper flies back to his Miami home on Dec. 8 and will likely play next in Indonesia where he’s a naturalized citizen. “It could be for an Indonesian team in the ABL or the local league or if they want me on the national team, for the SEA Games,” he said.

Even as Terrafirma racked up losses in the PBA, the Dyip was winning off the court with Prosper making a difference by voluntarily doing clinics, visiting barangay courts, distributing toys and food packs to underprivileged kids supported by the Hortaleza, Santos and Ongpin families and Dr. Iby Bautista. Prosper, 34, has played in 16 countries outside the US and said the Philippines will always be a priority in his basketball odyssey. “It feels like home,” he said. “I’m embracing the culture, the way people treat you, the way people work hard.”

Prosper was born in the Caribbean island of Dominica and raised by a single mother with a brother and two sisters from another father. When a volcano erupted in Dominica, his mother brought him to the neighboring island of Montserrat at 11. Two years later, Prosper was sent off alone to New York to a father he had never met by his mother because she couldn’t afford keeping him home. In New York, Prosper hardly saw his father and was brought to a shelter. At 18, he grew to 6-8 1/2 and coach Bernard Tomlin brought him to play for the State University of New York College at Old Westbury, a D3 school. Prosper saw action in four seasons with the varsity, raising his scoring clips from 9.4 as a freshman to 19.6 as a senior, in the process gaining recognition in Sports Illustrated’s Faces In The Crowd section for registering a triple double in a game with 18 points, 13 rebounds and 14 blocks.

From Old Westbury, Prosper reported for NBA workouts with Philadelphia, Phoenix, Washington and Boston but couldn’t secure a contract. After he was cut in the G-League, Prosper packed his bags to play overseas and traveled the world with stops in Sweden, Slovakia, Canada, Colombia, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Spain, UK, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Venezuela, Panama, Indonesia, Macau, Taiwan and the Philippines. It’s been an amazing career for Prosper and from the way things look, the journey is far from over.