We have been receiving a lot of queries from our members in multiply and facebook with regards to the names of those new guys who played in the Fil-Oil MVP Cup last Saturday. For the benefit of those who were unable to watch the game live or in TV, the Green Archers paraded several fresh faces and all performed well to help the team win their initial assignment against the Blue Eagles.
6 – Gabriel Banal: The son of Coach Joel Banal was already enrolled in La Salle last year but was chosen to play instead for the RP Youth Team. He was a former standout in Xavier School.
9 – Papot Paredes: Another RP Youth team member from Reedley, we hope he could eventually give the team a much-needed lift in the frontcourt.
16 – Yutien Andrada: The 6’7 beanpole was a member of the recent championship teams of the San Sebastian Staglets in the NCAA Juniors division. With good defensive skills, he has the potential to be a threat in the shaded lane as soon as he bulks up.
23 – Samuel Joseph Marata: Nope this is not former UP Maroon Nestor David as some may have thought. But he actually played for UPIS in high School though and his dad Sammy was a standout for the UP college team in the late 80s. Also, his two uncles Ric-Ric and Romulo were former professional players. Is there still any doubt that basketball runs in this boy’s family? He also played for the RP Youth team last year.
24 – Joel Tolentino: And yet another RP Youth team member, this cat-quick guard from UPIS played quite well last Saturday and will provide extra depth in the team’s backcourt rotation.
21 – Kish Grover Co: Oh yes he’s back! We included him here as some would not probably recognize him from the previous years because of his new “afro-man” image. Along with the new curly tops comes a more aggressive game from Kish whose presence was sorely missed last year.
I may as well include Coach Dindo Pumaren. After all those years seeing him on the other side of the scorers table about 5 meters away from Coach Franz, we will get accustomed to this scene eventually.
