Glorious moments

Second of a series

Bolts, tropa strike

MANILA, Philippines — Reaching milestones was the main theme for the PBA’s best and brightest.

Meralco shed its “always-a-bridesmaid” tag with an amazing breakthrough championship in the Season 48 Philippine Cup.

And the Bolts hit paydirt after a 13-year hunt at the expense of the San Miguel Beermen, the gold standard of the league’s centerpiece conference, 4-2.

Chris Newsome, who experienced all four of Meralco’s previous heartaches in the Governors’ Cup finals against Barangay Ginebra, drained the winning jumper in the 80-78 Game 6 squeaker that finally sealed the Bolts’ date with destiny.

After Meralco’s maiden triumph, it was sister team TNT’s turn to go back-to-back in the Season 49 Governors’ Cup and collar its 10th trophy overall.

With the prolific Rondae Hollis-Jefferson on return tour and coach Chot Reyes back after his Gilas Pilipinas tenure, the Tropang Giga repeated against Justin Brownlee and the Gin Kings, 4-2.

San Miguel Beer’s June Mar Fajardo continued to add to his legend as he won his eighth MVP and 10th and 11th Best Player of the Conference plums – both record-extending feats as he led SMB to the top in the Commissioner’s Cup and second in the All-Filipino.

NorthPort’s John Amores also made the year-end list, but for the wrong reason. The controversial guard allegedly fired shots at an opposing player after a pickup game altercation in Laguna, leading to an attempted homicide lawsuit that consequently resulted in a one-conference suspension by the PBA and revocation of license by the Games and Amusements Board (GAB).

Jerusalem, Taduran Stand Tall

Melvin Jerusalem and Pedro Taduran, Filipino world champions in the lightest among the boxing divisions, delivered the heaviest blows in the year.

Jerusalem, who turns 32 on Feb. 22, stunned Japanese Yudai Shigeoka last March in Nagoya and became the WBC minimumweight champion. Six months later, the boxer from Bukidnon defended his 105-lb title against Mexican Luis Castillo on home soil.

Jerusalem (23-3), with Sanman CEO JC Manangquil behind him, packs a heavy punch for his 5-foot-2 frame, flooring Shigeoka twice and Castillo once en route to the convincing wins. There’s a lot in store for 2025, including a possible rematch with the Japanese.

In the same weight class, Taduran made his presence felt, beating the other Shigeoka, Ginjiro, last July to win the IBF belt in Otsu City.

Taduran, 28, from Albay, was poised to defend his title against Chinese sensation Zhu Dianxing last month in South Korea. But the fight was called off due to sponsorship problems, and the Filipino champion fell into a waiting game.

Taduran is hoping to land a fight with Oscar Collazo of Puerto Rico, now the WBO and WBA champion following a seventh-round TKO win over Thammanon Niyomtrong of Thailand in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Hopes are high that Jerusalem and Taduran will stay on their feet, world champions in the same weight class, in 2025.

Pinoys Right On Cue

It’s the Philippines’ world. And the entire billiards scene is just living in it.

Led by Carlo Biado and Rubilen Amit, Filipino cue masters owned the rack across the world with titles one after another.

Biado added the world 10-ball diadem to his growing collection as Amit further cemented her legend as the greatest Filipina pool player in history by pocketing the world 9-ball trophy to highlight the utter dominance of the Philippines in the sport.

The 41-year-old Biado drubbed Japan’s Naoyuki Oi, 3-1, in the finals of the Predator World Pool Association (WPA) Men’s World 10-Ball Championship in Las Vegas, Nevada, pocketed a $75,000 (P4.2M) purse.

Biado’s feat ended a long title drought for the Philippines after his runner-up finish in 2015. Lee Van Corteza settled for second place in 2009 as Antonio Lining, Biado and Johann Chua had semifinal stints in 2009, 2011 and 2021, respectively.

Back in 2017, Biado won the world 9-ball title ruled by other greats in Efren “Bata” Reyes (1999), Alex Pagulayan (2004), Ronnie Alcano (2006) and Francisco “Django” Bustamante (2010).

Biado, who traces his roots in La Union and Nueva Ecija but now residing in Quezon City, also ruled the Chinese Taipei 9-Ball Open and the inaugural Ho Chi Minh City 9-Ball Open this year.

Amit wasn’t to be left behind, reigning supreme in the WPA World 9-Ball Women’s Championship in Hamilton, New Zealand with a similar 3-1 win over former champion Chen Siming of China for a $50,000 (P2.7 M) prize.

The 43-year-old Cebuana, who had a bridesmaid finish in the 2009 edition, was also a champion of the world 10-ball divisions in 2009 and 2013. The other world 10-ball winner was Chezka Centeno last year.

Biado, for his part, also served as a vital cog in Team Asia’s 11-6 victory against Team Europe in the inaugural Reyes Cup at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.

Joining him were compatriot Johann Chua, Aloysius Yapp of Singapore, Ko Pin Yi of Taiwan and Duong Quoc Hoang of Vietnam under the tutelage of Reyes himself.

Other notable winners in probably the greatest year for Philippine billiards were Chua (Hanoi Open, Zen and Yuan8 Open, Shanghai Open, Marboys Open), Jefrey Roda (Chinese Taipei Open), Jeffrey Ignacio (Indonesia Open, Japan Open), Dennis Orcollo (Jingxi Harbin Open), Roberto Gomez (Buffalo Classic), Lining (KKKings Imperial and Han Billiards Open, Tokai Gran Prix), Corteza (Predator Las Vegas Open), Jesson Marabi (RBC Open), AJ Manas (99 Billiards Club) and Michael Baoanan (Bali International).

Maroons Regain UAAP Throne

The UP Fighting Maroons ruled UAAP Season 87 for their second basketball title in four seasons. The State U only managed to win the same number of championships, including one during the pre-war.

Back in the day, UP was staging a bonfire at the Sunken Garden for a mere single win in the entire season like a cycle.

But this time, it was for a championship parade as UP, with four straight finals appearances, has slowly but surely cemented its stature as one of the best collegiate basketball programs today.

UP scraped past champion and No.1 seed La Salle in the back-and-forth Game 3, 66-62, that was witnessed by 25,248 fans – the biggest crowd in UAAP basketball history – to hoist its fourth overall title.

From Finals MVP JD Cagulangan to one-and-done center Quentin Millora-Brown, team captain Gerry Abadiano and versatile forward Francis Lopez who stood the tallest in Game 3 after a blunder in Game 2, heroes were everywhere for UP.

A legion of Fighting Maroons fought for it and helped build what is now a rock-solid Diliman hoops program but it was mentor Goldwin Monteverde’s coaching genius and the school’s vastly-improved recruitment and scouting program who laid the foundation.

Known as the author of the National U’s dynasty in the UAAP high school scene, Monteverde carried over this winning DNA and rubbed it off on the Fighting Maroons.

Under Monteverde’s tutelage, there was hope of an improvement from its darker days but he exceeded expectations in turning UP to a force to be reckoned with.

UP snapped a 36-year-title drought in Season 84 that prevented a four-peat reign for the Ateneo Blue Eagles then toppled the Topex Robinson-mentored Green Archers this Season 87 before they could even start their own dynasty led by back-to-back MVP Kevin Quiambao and Mythical Team member Mike Phillips.

In between, the Maroons finished runner-up to Ateneo and La Salle in Seasons 85 and 86, respectively.

A UP dynasty could be on the horizon. And the entire UAAP should be on the watch.

(To be continued)