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Harbour, Magnolia dispute solo lead
(November 18, 2008)

Games Today
(Jose Rizal University gym)
2 p.m. – Harbour Center vs Magnolia
4 p.m. – Toyota Otis vs Bacchus

The six-peat bid of Harbour Centre will be put to another test today when it battles with co-leader Magnolia Purewater while Toyota Otis hopes to end a three-game losing run in the 2009 PBL PG Flex Linoluem Cup at the Jose Rizal University gym.

Sporting 2-0 win-loss records, the Batang Pier and Wizards collide at 2 p.m. in a game expected to be hot but exciting since both teams are bannered by several exciting players from UAAP.

Harbour Center, which is gunning for a record sixth straight championship, will have La Salle’s Rico Maierhofer, Far Eastern University’s Mark Barroca, JR Cawaling and Riel Cervantes and old reliables like Jerwin Gaco and Boyet Bautista to lead their offense while the Wizards will rely heavily on University of Santo Tomas star Dylan Ababou and veterans Al Magpayo, Neil Raneses and Paul Alcaraz.

Clashing in the other game at 4 p.m. are Toyota Otis and Bacchus Energy with the Sparks out to barge into the win column after dropping their first three games.

The Energy Warriors opened their campaign on a high note after pulling off an 88-84 stunner over Hapee on Tuesday last week but lost their second game two days later against Burger King, 83-79.
On paper, Toyota Otis appears to be formidable after retaining the services of its 10 reliable players led by Letran’s RJ Jazul and Erick Rodriguez plus the entry La Salle stars JV Casio, James Mangahas and PJ Walsham and JRU’s John Wilson.

Despite the team’s string of setbacks, coach Ariel Vanguardia is not yet about to push the panic button – at least for now.

But if they lost to Bacchus, which is not impossible, then Vanguardia has to do something drastic to re-ignite the flame of their bid for a first-ever title in the country’s premier amateur basketball league.

“The team is doing everything to get back on the winning track. Man-for-man, we have the talent but we have to play as a unit to win,” said Toyota Otis Board representative Gil Angeles. “But I’m sure that once we find the right chemistry, tuloy-tuloy na ito.”

Coach Lawrence Chongson will again rely on UE stars Paul Lee, James Martinez, Hans Thiele, Parri Llagas and new recruit Orlando Daroya of Arellano University.

But one thing going for Toyota Otis is the crowd support. JRU fans are likely to root for Vanguardia since he is the head coach of JRU Bombers. Three of Toyota Otis players – James Sena, Marvin Hayes and Floyd Dedicatoria – are also playing for JRU.

Focus in the Harbour-Magnolia showdown is how the Batang Pier limit the production of Ababou – their former protégée.

The 6-foot-3 forward is doing great gun for Magnolia, averaging 18.5 points in two games. He also is contributing 6.5 rebounds and 2.5 steals a game, enough to win him the first PBL Press Corps Player of the Week award.

Ababou was actually the next in line in the hierarchy as the player Harbour Centre hopes to build as its newest star – just in the mold of Jason Castro and Joseph Yeo.

But due to the league’s adopt-a-school program, Harbour Centre owner Mikee Romero, who is also the league chairman, allowed the prodigious forward to play for Magnolia Purewater since the later has a tie-up with UST.

“Sayang nga si Dylan, malaking bagay sana siya sa team kaso we have to give him toMagnolia kasi may tie-up sila ng UST,” said Harbour Centre team manager Erick Arejola.

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