Halikinu Radio Episode 4

It was riot night at the Halikinu Radio show last night at the NU 107 radio station. I was sick last night and wasnt feeling well but just like what I said my body was the one sick, but my mind wasnt, although I have a sick mind it didnt prevent me from belting out the usual stuff. Here are some pictures and highlights of the show.

One of our guests featured the Ateneo School of Medicine students. They are the ones responsible for the Magazine for their med students entitled SCOPE. I just hope that they try my suggestion of naming their magazine FHM - Fublic Health & Medicine!

With Wesley Gonzalez as one of the Guest, it was the most riotous shows ever as Wesley showed his funny side by sharing funny stories about his experiences as a Blue Eagle and now as a San Miguel Beerman. The show became a riot, I just hope that next week we still be on air.

Eagles clip Falcons anew

The streak is still intact, the Ateneo Blue Eagles beat the Adamson Soaring Falcons once again as the unbeaten run of the Eagles against the Falcons which dates back to September 18,1997 is still intact as the real blue beat the other blue 61-51. The Adamson Falcons, featuring its revitalized line up and patient coach Leo Austria actually found a way to shut down the Big Ateneo Machine, but unfortunately for them, stepping up is one word that the Ateneans learned from their loss four days ago.

The first quarter was like a chess match with neither team wanting to budge. Leo Canuday waxed hot as he scored 7 first quarter points. The Blue Eagles took the first quarter with a slim 16-15 lead after Nonoy Baclao’s fourth point came from a jumper from the elbow. The second quarter saw both teams tighten their defense more as both teams battled to stay on top. Ateneo drew first blood as they scored 6 points to go up 21-18. Adamson countered through Jan Colina and Jerrick Cañada to go up 22-21. Then the Blue Eagles tried to bring the momentum all the way back to Katipunan as they finished the quarter with a 7-0 run courtesy of Eric Salamat and Jai Reyes to go on top after two quarters 28-22.

The first half was so tight that the two teams had 4 deadlocks and 13 lead changes. Adamson was on track to meet their quota of 22 turnovers as they ended the half with 12 while the Blue Eagles were just 4 turnovers away. Then the third quarter happened for the Blue Eagles and they broke the game open for good.

Eric Salamat opened the third quarter with two free throws after Leo Canuday was whistled an unsportsmanlike foul. In the next play Kirk Long drained a three from the side while Salamat scored on a drive and then sank another three pointer from a Rabah screen and before you know it the Eagles were up 38 -24 with 7:43 to go. This was the spark the Blue Eagles needed to give some distance to them and the Falcons. After that run, the Blue Eagles held off countless Falcon rallies to secure the win.

The MVP, Rabah Al- Husaini, scored only 6 points on 3 of 13 shooting as he was continually hounded by the Adamson big men as he was always double or triple teamed which resulted in bad shots. Good thing that back up center Justin Chua took up the slack of Rabah by scoring 8 points. Eric Salamat topscored with 16 points while Ryan Buenafe and Jai Reyes ably backed him up. Next stop for the Blue Eagles, the NU Bulldogs.

The scores

Ateneo (61) Salamat 16, Reyes 10, Chua 8, Al-Husaini 6, Monfort 5, Buenafe 5, Baclao 4, Austria 4, Long 3, Salva 0

Adamson (51) Canuday 11, Colina 11, Cañada 8, Alvarez 8, Nuyles 7, Santos3, Margallo 3, Galinato 0, Camson 0, Lozada 0, Cabrera 0,

Quarterscores:

16-15, 28-22, 47-39, 61-51

Olympians beat Hardy Herons

Two video excerpts from the game of the STI College Olympians against the University of Makati Hardy Herons. First video shows Norman Ihalas on a get away while the second video shows the Lean Stringbean Machine Maclean Sabellina on a dunk shot.

The scores

STI (92)

Macabasco 15, Ablaza 13, Antonio 12, Sabellina 10, Cruz 8, Ihalas 6, Orias 6, Bocablo 5, Po 5, Bautista 4, Dagulpo 2, Reyes 2, Villadoz 2, Waminal 2, Washington 0, Carino 0, Pascual 0.

UMak (54)

Graza 14, Capil 8, Gonzaga 8, Sison 7, Serrano 5, Junsay 4, Ramos 3, Eugenio 2, Florendo 2, Vitales 1, Diamante 0, Castullo 0, Manguera 0, Dalena 0.

Quarterscores 18-13, 35-30, 66-42, 92-54.

Junior Olympians lose to Icons

Angelo Cordon fights for the rebound

Team Chemistry is a big factor in making a solid team and the defending NAASCU Juniors champions Informatics Junior Icons showed that as they won against one of the new kids of the NAASCU Juniors, the STI College Junior Olympians 56-51 at the University of Manila Gym. It was a sorry loss for the Junior Olympians who rallied from 12 points down to within 1 point 52-51 with a minute left in the game but ran out of steam in the homestretch.

The Icons started hot as they converted on several fastbreaks after forcing the Junior Olympians to commit 13 first quarter turnovers that the Icons converted to fastbreak points. The Junior Olympians had a hard time attacking the full court pressure defense of the Junior Icons as the Olympian five of Ivan Moreno, Jason Intong, Axel Nolasco, Eric Sanchez and Paul Sabacahan seemed lost after the Junior Icons breezed past the Olympians with a 20-8 first quarter lead.

Mark Dulalia scores off the dribble

The Junior Olympians came back as their half court defense forced their counterparts to take poor shots that enabled the Olympians to get back. Ivan Moreno, Mark Dulalia and Eric Sanchez combined to drop a 12-4 bomb capped by the three pointer by Sanchez that suddenly cut the Junior Icons lead to 1, 52-51 with 30 seconds left. Unfortunately, their unfamiliarity showed as the Junior Olympians were forced to two more turnovers that the Icons converted to four points that put the game beyond recall and send the Junior Olympians packing.

Eric Sanchez twists and scores

It was a bitter pill to swallow since the Olympians shot 7 of 21 from the line and had 35 turnovers. In the last play of the game, the Icons were lucky to get away with a technical foul as they unknowingly fielded in six players. Unfortunately for the Junior Olympians, the three erring referees did not even notice it and there was no penalty whatsoever. Next stop, the University of Makati Junior Herons.

Paul Sabacahan hangs in mid air

Maroons UPset Blue Eagles 68-58

Overconfident - Atenean trait...please refer to Ateneo vs. NU 2007 2nd round game.

Well, like what they say, its better to lose early than during the homestretch. The Battle of Katipunan showed that in the modern era, the story of David and Goliath still holds true. The UP Fighting Maroons, winless in their first three outings proved that with grit and determination it can make the impossible happen as they beat the previously unbeaten Ateneo Blue Eagles 68-58.

The UP Maroons shot a woeful 41.2% from the field, but not to be outdone are the Blue Eagles who could only come out with a 38% shooting clip on 19 out of 50 shooting. It was also hard to believe that the Maroons outrebounded the Eagles 37-34, had one more assist 16-15 but the most important stat for the Maroons is that they addressed their turnovers and played with more confidence as they forced the Blue Eagles who averaged only 13 turnovers to 18 for the whole game, the Maroons had only 14.

Woody Co and Mark Lopez combined for 30 points as both players together with Carlo Gomez and Alvin Padilla waxed hot in the second half as the Maroons dropped a 14-0 bomb to erase a 29-35 deficit to go up 43-35. At that point the Blue Eagles did not know what hit them as the Maroons played their chips right while the Blue Eagles were in disarray with only Nico Salva as the bright spot who scored the 6 points of the Blue Eagles in the third quarter.

When the fourth quarter came, the Blue Eagles would go exclusively to Rabah Al-Husaini who was silent and temperemental the first three quarters. Unfortunately for the Blue Eagles they were slow to go down as the rampage of the Maroons continued with Mark Lopez darting for fastbreaks while Woody Co and Alvin Padilla sinking consecutive three pointers. All the Eagles can do was watch in disbelief as their unbeaten season came to an end. The Blue Eagle crowd was stunned with what they saw, it looked as if the Fighting Maroons were the unbeaten team while the Blue Eagles were the ones with a 0 -3 slate. We hope that this game will serve as a wake up call for the BLue Eagles that they shouled not take any team lightly.

UP (68)

Co 15, Lopez 15, Gomez 9, Padilla 8, Sison 7, Braganza 7, de Asis 3, Maniego 2, Juruena 2, Gamboa 0, Gingerich 0, Mi. Reyes 0, Ma. Reyes 0

ATENEO (58)

Al-Husaini 17, Salva 11, Salamat 9, Reyes 8, Long 5, Monfort 3, Chua 2, Baclao 2, Gonzaga 1, Tiongson 0, Sumalinog 0, Golla 0, de Chavez 0, Austria 0, Buenafe 0

Quarter scores: 18-22, 29-35, 46-41, 68-58

Olympians lose to Hawks

Olympians and Hawks jockey for position

The STI College Olympians opened the first quarter with six turnovers, four missed free throws and 5 missed field goals while their opponent, 5 time champion University of manila capitalized on the Olympians miscues by opening up an 8 – 0 lead courtesy of gutsy guard Jeff Viernes as they cruised to a 73 -62 win against last year’s runner up. The game was the first out of town game of the NAASCU as all the teams travelled to play at the San Sebastian College De Cavite gym in Cavite City.

Renz Cruz scores two

The Olympians never knew what hit them, as the team self destructed in the first quarter because of the scarcity in offense, their defense was non existent in the second quarter as the Hawks raced to a 43-22 halftime lead. This is the first time in years that the Olympians allowed that much in a quarter. This is the second straight game that the Olympians started slow and paid dearly on their poor showing as league leaders San Sebastian College Cavite and Informatics remain the only unbeaten teams.

Mark Orias on the fastbreak

John Matubang, UM’s newest find showed his unique basketball sense and skills as he orchestrated the crippling run that made the Hawks eat the Olympians defense. Everytime the Olympians would threaten to bring down the lead , Matubang would douse cold water on their rally. Matubang and the rest of the Hawks flexed their muscles in the first half as they torched the Olympians with 23 and 18 points in two quarters as the STIers never recovered from that lethargic start.

Maclean Sabellina leads the way

Maclean Sabellina tried to bring back the Olympians as he scored 15 third quarter points to breathe life to the Olympians hopes of a fourth straight win. Unfortunately there was not enough help from the rest of the Olympians as their 16 first half turnovers proved to be so costly that the nearest the Olympians came was at 9 points 62-53. Jerald Bautista was a non factor after getting ticky tacky fouls and most of his points came in the fourth quarter. Bull strong center Martin Antonio missed a lot of field goals, some were even at point blank range and even the free throws awarded him were muffed. That struggle underscored the poor play of the Olympians. Next stop..The University of Makati Hardy Herons.

Cedrick Ablaza on the drive

The Scores

UM (73) -- Matubang 24, Delos Trinos 15, Viernes 11, Manuel 8, Basan 5, Tamayo 4, Patricio 3, Sadsad 3, Fe.Jacob 0, Ibay 0, Fr. Jacob 0, Rabalo 0, Mallada 0, Sanguyo 0, Ferrer 0.

STI (62) --Sabellina 16, Bautista 10, Carino 8, Orias 6, Antonio 5, Ihalas 5, Macabasco 4, Po 2, Ablaza 2, Dagulpo 0, Bocalbo 0, Villadoz 0,Washington 0, Pascual 0, Waminal 0.

Quarterscores 23-10, 43-22, 58-46, 73-62.

STI College beats AMACU 80 - 70

Maclean Sabellina and Mark Macalindan battling for position

The diesel powered STI College Olympians proved that they have enough firepower to finish off rival school AMA Computer University in their first encounter this year as the Olympians beat the Titans 80 -70 at the resumption of the 9^th NAASCU Basketball tournament at the Centro Escolar Gym in Mendiola. The Olympians, together with defending champion San Sebastian College Cavite and Informatics International College, are the only remaining teams unbeaten with identical records of 3 wins and zero losses.

Maclean with a break away dunk

In this game, the Titans started like a house on fire as they raced to a 5-1 lead in the first four minutes of the game as the hapless Olympians started throwing the ball and firing blanks against the Titans. The Olympians regrouped and finally sank a field goal after the stingy AMACU defense allowed them to score to cut the lead to one 7 -6 with less than 5 minutes to go in the 1^st quarter. Rookie forward Jerald Bautista and center Martin Antonio energized the Olympians as they kept the Titans at bay with their timely hits. Bautista’s lane incursions gave the Olympians some breathing room as the quarter ended with the Titans on top 15-13.

Macky Macabasco drives to the hoop

Two new faces in the Olympians roster are two 6-3 power forwards from STI College Balagtas, Cedric Ablaza and Paulo Villadoz. Both players underscored their strength underneath as they battled the Titans big men when regular starters Maclean Sabellina and Martin Antonio were on the bench. The second quarter was a see-saw battle for both teams as the Olympians and Titans would not give each other room to break away. The Olympians finally caught up with the Titans as the inside plays of Bautista, Antonio and rookie Cedric Ablaza gave the Olympians their first taste of the lead at 19 – 18.

Cedrick Ablaza floats in mid air

Unfortunately for the Olympians, when they were trying to break away after scoring four straight baskets, the Titans battled back by scoring on two break away fastbreaks to seize the upperhand again 24-23 with 3:27 left to play in the half. The Olympians shock troopers then took control once again as Tom Washington scored three points after sinking a free and scoring on a field goal off his own free throw miss that energized the STI five anew. The Olympians then went ahead again 26-24 with less than two minutes left. Then the Titans dropped a 7-2 bomb to take the half 31 – 28.

Jen Reyes drives to the hoop

By this time the Olympians have had enough with their poor first half showing. After coasting through the first 20 minutes of play, STI suddenly put their gears to overdrive to catch up with the Titans and level the score at 31 – all after one and a half minutes. After that it was an all STI show as the Olympians five on the floor consisting of Jerald Bautista, Martin Antonio, Norman Ihalas, Maclean Sabellina and Macky Macabasco punctured the hoops to give the Olympians a 42 – 36 lead with 3:10 to play in the quarter. The vaunted half court zone defense of the Olympians produced wonders as the Titans faltered from beyond the arc. This time around it was the Olympians turn to give a fiery wind up as Norman Ihalas put the icing on the cake when he scored on a three pointer after barely crossing the half court that gave the Olympians a comfortable 53 – 46 lead.

Jerald Bautista with a left handed lay up

The fourth quarter started with a three pointer coming from Mark Orias that gave the Olympians their first double digit lead at 56- 46. After that, the Olympians were not yet satisfied as they made another 10 -2 run that gave them their biggest lead of 18 points at 66-48 with less than 7 minutes left in the game. After that, the Olympians and Titans exchanged baskets as the STI team was poised to put the game beyond recall with 4 minutes left. But then again, the Titans refused to buckle as they proved that they have one last push in them.

Jen Reyes fouls Jed Maravilla

With the Olympians comfortably ahead 68 – 54 and 3:37 left in the ball game, AMACU guard Sander Salvador suddenly caught fire as he brought back the Titans single handedly. Salvador scored 15 points as he hit three 3 pointers, two field goals and two free throws inside three minutes to rally the Titans as they came to within six points 76-70 with a little over 30 seconds left in the ballgame. Unfortunately for them, Martin Antonio and Jerald Bautista conspired to give the Olympians a fiery wind up as they ran away with the 80 – 70 win. The Olympians outscored the Titans 52 – 39 in the second half and if not for the hot hands of Salvador the Titans would have been blown away. Top scoring for the Olympians is Martin Antonio with 17 markers.

Martin Antonio scores on this lay in

STI COLLEGE (80)

Antonio 17, Bautista 14, Ablaza 13, Ihalas 12, Sabellina 6, Cariño 4, Villadoz 4, Reyes 3, Orias 3, Washington 3, Po 0, Macabasco 0,

AMACU (70)

Salvador 19, Maravilla 12, Bernardo 11, Nicolas 8, Mangalindan 7, Regala 5, Tan 2 Cabico 2, Masigan 0, BOnifacio 0, Abjear 0,

Quarterscores: 13 -15, 28 – 31, 53 – 46, 80 - 70

Blue Eagles win third game

And then there was one. The Ateneo Blue Eagles addressed their knack for bad starts as they matched the early firepower by the UST Growling Tigers and then when they finally settled down the team went on to a rampage that the Tigers had a hard time coming back from. The result was a 93-77 massacre that gave the Blue Eagles a 3-0 win -loss card and solo leadership in the 72nd season of the UAAP. This is the same start that the Blue Eagles had last year which is an premonition of what to expect at the end of the year.

The Blue Eagles fought tooth and nail with the Tigers in the first quarter as both teams sized each other up. Rabah Al- Husaini started strong as he nailed a jumper and scored six more points inside as he scored at will to give the Blue Eagles a strong presence in the early going which was not present in the two previous games where they trailed 0 - 8 against FEU and 23-11 against UE. Rabah showed the UST team what was going to happen.

With the game tied at 16 - all Ryan Buenafe took matters into his own hands as he scored on a three, off a steal and a jumper to give the Blue Eagles a 30 -21 first quarter lead that they never relinquished. As usual, his co SSC Alum Eric Salamat was there all game long as each both scored 14 points to give the Ateneans something to be happy about. Both Salamat and Buenafe also helped out Nonoy Baclao on defense as they covered their men well which resulted in steals and fastbreak points.

Talking about Rabah, Eric and Ryan is just one side of the coin because the Blue Eagle that really stepped up in this game is the team's last addtion from their Team B roster, Eman Monfort. Eman made up for the subpar game of starting point guard Jai Reyes. Monfort scored 20 points, hauled down 5 rebounds and came up with 2 assists as well. What???5 rebounds from the smallest guy on the court? Eman the mighty mite who is listed as 5'6 but looks more like 5'5 to me sank 6 three pointers as he kept the hot shooting Ateneans on track!

The rest of the team saw action for the first time with rookies Juami Tiongson scoring 7 points, Frank Golla 2 points and Chris de Chavez netted 2 more. The bench was solid with Nico Salva leading the way with 8 points. Salva is slowly gaining the confidence of Ateneo followers as the future of the team with his tenacity and solid play. Next stop, the UP Maroons..let the massacre begin.

ATENEO 93

Monfort 20, Salamat 14, Buenafe 14, Al-Husaini 13, Salva 8, Tiongson 7, Long 7, Baclao 4, Golla 2, de Chavez 2, Chua 2, Sumalinog 0, Reyes 0, Gonzaga 0, Burke 0, Austria 0

UST 77

Maliksi 20, Ababou 17, Mirza 13, Teng 6, Bautista 6, Afuang 5, Mariano 4, Green 2, Fortuna 2 Camus 2, Ungria 0, Feliz 0, Cam 0

Quarter scores 30 -21 , 52-35, 68 -49, 93 -77

Olympians win over Saints

TEAM STI

The STI College Olympians started where they left off last season - missing 22 free throws. Opening day jitters might have made themmiss that much free throws plus the fact that they turned the ball over 22 times. Fortunately for the Olympians, their signature defense were at a high as they shut down the big men of St. Clare College enroute to an 80 -69 win at the start of the 9th season of the NAtional Athletic Association of Schools Colleges and Universities.

Norman Ihalas on the line

The Olympians were just coasting in the first half as both teams were trying to feel each other out and adjusting to the opening day excitement but when the second half came it was all together a different story. The Olympians tightened on defense and exploded on offense and the Saints failed to react and answer the Olympians onslaught. The Saints inside duo of Aries Parinas and Richmond Sibal were smothered by the STI bigmen as both combined for only 16 points .

The STI College Balagtas duo of Cedric Ablaza and Paulo Villadoz

STI paraded 11 new faces this year and their rookies contributed immensely to their win. Jerald Bautista scored 13 points, Mark Orrias had 11 points, Cedric Ablaza came up with 10 points and Paulo Villadoz contributed 7 points. Norman Ihalas and Bautista topscored as both scored 13 apiece as the balanced scoring of the Olympians still gave them the win.

Norman Ihalas floats in the air

The Olympians need to address their free throw shooting woes that will hopefully make them strong contenders this year. NAASCU fans see the a repeat of last year's finals and the Olympians are hopeful that they change the outcome of that finals this year.

Jerald Bautista punctures the hoops

STI College (80)

Bautista 13, Ihalas 13, Orias 11, Ablaza 10, Macabasco 8, Villadoz 7, Sabellina 6, Antonio 5, Carino 2, Washington 2. Bocablo 1,

St. Clare College (69)

R.Coronel 20, Parinas 10, Mustre 10, Jabar 8, Sibal 6, Rivera 4, Vitales 4, Gatmaitan 2, Gasparillo 2, Puno 2, Role 1.

Quarterscores: 16-11, 29-22, 55-38, 80-69.

Paulo Villadoz is hammered

NAASCU Opens 9th Season

Yours truly and Ana Lucero of CEU hosted the event

The Ninth Season of the National Athletic Association of Schools Colleges and Universities (NAASCU) opened with a bang as the 12 member schools start another season with the Basketball tournament taking centerstage. The NAASCU also welcomed another member to its fold, Our Lady of Fatima University. The Phoenix as they will be known made their presence felt with a high octane performance in front of the jampacked Cuneta Astrodome. The member schools of the NAASCU include University of Manila, University of Makati, AMA Computer University, Centro Escolar University, Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Pasay, Our Lady of Fatima University, New Era University, San Sebastian College de Cavite, St. Clare College, Informatics International College,Lyceum of SUbic Bay and STI College.

Senator Pia with her youthful look

Highlights of the opening include the speeches by the guest speakers. First to talk on the podium is the youthful Senator and Sports enthusiast Pia Cayetano. Senator Pia shared that she was once a varsity volleyball player and eventually national player. She was very happy to represent the county in various international competitions. More importantly she said that it was through sports that she learned many values including discipline and character formation. She said that what she learned back then are the same principles she applied in her life which made her what she is now. The athletes and students lauded her and received her warmly.

Dr. Jay Adalem, NAASCU President & Atty. Ernesto delos Santos,

NAASCU VP with Mike Barredo

Another guest is PHILSPADA President Mike Barredo. Mr. Barredo used to be a varsity player for De la Salle in College and had an unfortunate accident when he was 24. Because of that accident he became blind. Instead of giving up on life, Mike rose to the occasion and became a revered businessman and a revered sportsman. He later on became a commissioner for the Philippine Sports Commisison and eventually became President of the International Blind Federation. Mike's presence alone was remarkable and that he wowed the crowed and made them cheer for each other.

Martin Antonio, STI College, Mr. NAASCU 2009

Awards were also given out with the PLP Eagles given the people's power award for the number of tickets sold for the whole season. At the same time three members schools belted out high powered dance presentations and Our Lady of Fatima was sworn in as the 12th member of the NAASCU. The main event of the morning was the search for Mr and Ms NAASCU 2009. The twelve participating schools really had a bevy of beauties and hunks represent their schools. Priscilla Mae Navidad of AMA Computer University and Martin Antonio of STI College were judged as Mr. and Ms. NAASCU 2009.

Prisciall Mae Navidad, AMACU, Ms. NAASCU 2009

This season proves to be a more exciting one since all the teams have juniors teams now and a lot of coaching changes have occurred while a lot of exciting players are now in fold. So let the games begin.