Blog Posts by Sid Ventura

Smart Gilas 2.0 bounced back from a tough loss to China to outplay Asian powerhouse Lebanon, 78-68, to get its FIBA Asia Cup campaign in Tokyo, Japan, back on track.

Marcus Douthit won the battle of the naturalized players, hitting 25 points, including seven straight in a crucial 9-2 run in the fourth period, to go along with 21 rebounds as he thoroughly outplayed his Lebanese counterpart Garnett Thompson.

Thompson, a 32-year-old six-foot-nine power forward from Providence, had 17 points, but only two in fourth period, and was unable to stop Douthit down low.

Unlike in the China game where they relied too much on three-point shots, taking 35 attempts and making only six, the Filipinos attempted only 13 against Lebanon, preferring to go to Douthit on pick-and-roll plays which the Lebanese had trouble stopping.

Lebanon, with the comebacking Fadi El-Khatib leading the way, took a 41-38 advantage at the half. The lead changed hands a few times early in the third period, before the Philippines

Boston Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo lets out a smile during his skills clinic. (Photo credit: Victor Fraile/The Power of Sport Images)

Rajon Rondo's recent skills clinic at the RONAC Center in San Juan was pretty much similar to the way man himself plays: no frills and little fanfare, but spiked with a display of vast basketball knowledge.

The Celtics' All-Star point guard, whose trip here was courtesy of his sponsor Red Bull, conducted a two-hour training session for selected UAAP and NCAA junior and senior players, where he taught the wide-eyed youngsters the basketball drills that have helped hone his skills and have made him one of the best court generals in the NBA today.

Rondo takes his basketball very seriously. To make sure the clinic didn't turn into a media circus, he instructed organizers to limit the media people present to a small number and also disallowed the use of flash photography. The moody NBA star also limited his interaction with the media, eschewing the usual one-on-one interviews and instead entertaining only around four to five questions after the clinic was over.

His message was clear: he

Rolles, Gregor and Igor Gracie are in town for the ONE FC card on August 31. (Photo courtesy of Loren Mack)

The G & A Building along Pasong Tamo Extension in Makati City is an old, rundown three-story structure that has clearly seen better days. Its façade is straight out of the 80s, and a dark interior with poorly-lit hallways greets you when you enter.

It's the last place you'd expect to find a state-of-the-art fitness center, yet in the basement of this decrepit building that's exactly what you'll find. The Elite Fitness Gym 24/7 is at the very end of the otherwise abandoned basement, like an oasis in the middle of the desert.

As the name implies, the gym is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week and offers specialized training and conditioning programs. It's partly owned by PBA players LA Tenorio and Paolo Bugia, and as such it boasts of some pretty high-profile clientele from the local sporting world.

Last Friday, though, the gym played host to three very, very high-profile visitors, that is, if you're a mixed martial arts (MMA) fan. The Gracie brothers of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu fame are

When University of the Philippines coach Ricky Dandan entered the press room for the customary interview of the winning coach, the Fighting Maroons mentor remarked, “Ganito pala ang itsura dito.”

Dandan made his first appearance in the press room this season after the Maroons, following a series of close losses, finally broke through and snapped a 15-game losing streaking dating back to last season with a convincing 63-48 win over the University of the East at the conclusion of the first round of UAAP men’s basketball action at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

“This is like sunshine after dark days of the torrential rains,” said Dandan, whose team lost its last nine games last season and its first six this season, including four by six points or less.

The Maroons made sure there would no let-up this time, as they practically led from start to finish to win their first game since August 4 of last year. They forced the Warriors into a maze of turnovers, while also crashing the boards

It was a classic shootout, the reigning best player of the UAAP going head to head with the league’s super rookie in a duel that needed two extra periods to decide a winner.

Jeron Teng and Bobby Ray Parks both scored career-highs of 35 points each, but in the end, Teng’s De La Salle Green Archers came out on top, 87-86, over Parks’ National U Bulldogs in a double-overtime thriller in the UAAP men’s basketball tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Teng, the rookie sensation out of Xavier, shot 14-of-24 from the field, including a crucial triple in the second overtime that gave the Archers a six-point lead, as he became the first La Salle player to score at least 30 points since Joseph Yeo poured in 31 on September 24, 2003.

Parks registered the fourth 30-plus-point game in his young UAAP career, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the gritty Archers, who blew two chances to win the game outright at the end of regulation and the first overtime but finally held off the Bulldogs in the

University of Sto. Tomas achieved a milestone Wednesday by establishing the very first five-game winning streak under Coach Pido Jarencio’s tenure courtesy of a methodical 68-58 beating of hard-luck University of the Philippines that forced a three-way tie at the top of the standings of the UAAP men’s basketball tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

The Tigers surpassed last season’s four-game winning streak and won five in a row for the first time since Jarencio took over the coaching chores for the Espana-based squad in 2006. More importantly, the win allowed UST to move up to 5-1 and catch Far Eastern University and defending champion Ateneo at the helm of the eight-team field.

“Pinagpapala pa tayo,” said Jarencio. “Ang sama ng first three quarters namin, hanggang last 2:53 seconds, sinabi ko sa kanila wala pa kaming ginagawang matino. Ang tamad namin tapos hindi kami nag-e-execute. Buti na lang si Karim (Abdul) nag-dominate sa inside.”

The Fighting Maroons, who lost their sixth

With his team clinging to a precarious lead in the dying minutes, UE head coach Jerry Codinera came up with a simple plan: put the ball in Roi Sumang’s hands and let the shifty guard find a way to score.

The ploy worked to perfection, with Sumang scoring eight of his 18 points in the last 1:32 and the Warriors hung on for a 71-66 victory over the Adamson Falcons to finally break into the win column in the UAAP men’s basketball tournament at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

The wily combo guard struck for six points on difficult drives to the basket and added two insurance free throws with 8.1 seconds left as UE barely avoided a monumental collapse after they squandered most of an 18-point lead in the face of a furious Adamson comeback in the fourth period.

Down 29-47 in the third, Adamson crept to within 61-58 with 2:40 left on a split by Jericho Cruz. The Falcons had a chance to inch even closer but Roider Cabrera muffed two free throws with 1:48 to go. Sumang then began to take charge,

Fil-American cager Chris Ellis made a huge impression at Wednesday’s Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Rookie Camp at Club650 in Libis by topping two drills in the biometrics and agility test.

The six-foot-six California native, who started for NLEX in the last PBA D-League tournament, showed his all-around athleticism by topping the 50-meter sprint and the vertical leap, boosting his stock heading into this Sunday’s 2012 PBA Rookie Draft.

Ellis clocked 5.86 seconds in the sprint and leaped a phenomenal 11 feet, four inches in the vertical leap as he led 68 other aspirants in the camp where they performed a variety of physical tests under the watchful eyes of several PBA scouts and coaches.

Ellis’ fellow Fil-Am and NLEX teammate Cliff Hodge turned in equally impressive numbers, going 5.87 in the 50-meter sprint and also leaping 11 feet, four inches on his second jump to also impress the talent evaluators present. However, Ellis’ feat was more remarkable since he jumped 11 feet,