The San Miguel Beermen-Philippines: A quest to uphold a winning tradition
First, some news: The San Miguel Beermen-Philippines were conquered by the Saigon Heat in Tan Binh Stadium in Vietnam, 92-89 in a tightly contested Asean Basketball League (ABL) regular season matchup. The Heat climbed to a league-leading 3-1 record while the Beermen absorbed their first loss in two games.
Imports Dior Lowhorn and David Palmer paced the Heat with 27 and 26 points, respectively, while Filipino guard Jai Reyes added 22 for Saigon, which outscored San Miguel 30-21 in the final canto. Gabe Freeman’s fourteen markers led the Beermen’s scoring parade which also saw five other players hit double-figures.
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The Beermen host the same Vietnamese squad on Friday, February 1st in its home opener at the Ynares Sports Complex in Pasig City. Gametime is 5:00PM, Manila time.
Prior to the setback in Ho Chi Minh, these same Beermen had not been defeated in eleven outings since being re-formed in late 2012. Among their conquests were avenging their loss in last year’s ABL championship to Indonesia on its home turf, triumphs against three Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) squads and victories against PBA Developmental League (D-League) teams as well as “friendlys” with fellow ABL teams.
The day before leaving for Vietnam, Team Manager Rico Meneses had already warned his charges of the antagonistic environment they would be experiencing in at Tan Binh: “Expect the most hostile crowd and the worst officiating. They will do everything to get into our heads over there.” He was right. It, however, was a close game and a sorry loss.
The defeat only helps fuel San Miguel’s quest to uphold a tradition.
The San Miguel franchise was one of the founding members of the PBA in 1975. In 2011, it changed its name to the Petron Blaze Boosters and successfully captured the season-ending Governors Cup, the franchise’s 19th PBA title—the most in league history.
In 2012, an opportunity to join the ABL arrived and the corporation was quick to field in its participation in the multi-nation tournament. It was the second squad playing out of the Philippines, along with the Air Asia Philippine Patriots.
“Joining the ABL last year was a unique opportunity from a marketing perspective to showcase the brand (San Miguel Beer) in our region,” Meneses explains. “San Miguel Beer is a global brand and our presence in the ABL allows us to promote it in a very innovative way.”
Under the tutelage of Head Coach Bobby Parks, the Beermen advanced all the way to the Finals but were eventually defeated at home by the Indonesia Warriors. The loss was so bitter that San Miguel ABL Representative Noli Eala vowed to come back stronger the following season.
“We learned many lessons from our first season in the ABL,” Eala explains. “We saw what the team lacked and what we needed to improve on for the upcoming season and we were able to address part of it by acquiring two former PBA MVPs in Asi Taulava and Eric Menk. We also changed imports and brought in a young big man in Brian Williams and battle-tested Gabe Freeman, whose games I believe are perfect for our ABL campaign.
“This is an almost completely new squad altogether.”
After the Patriots moved their franchise to the PBA before the 2013 ABL season, San Miguel became the lone Philippine entry, making the management very proud to be the nation’s standard-bearer against some very stiff opposition in the Southeast Asian community. Eala welcomed the pressure as well as the prestige.
“The ABL is a great concept,” he says. “I hope it grows even more in the coming years. We hope to be part of its evolution.”
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Eala has been around winners in his time. As a broadcaster, he has covered countless championship series and as a former Commissioner of the PBA has also seen his fair share of teams winning titles. The recruitment of Taulava and Menk now provide veteran leadership to a collection of talents that are immensely complimentary to each other.
“Asi and Eric are great leaders who bring in their excellent work ethic,” Eala continues. “Having two former (PBA) MVPs on your squad is something that you won’t have the opportunity to be blessed with everyday.”
“I’ve won one championship in my (professional) career and I’ve lost in the finals six times,” Taulava reminisces on his PBA days. “But with these guys right now, I think we have a great shot at winning a championship. It’s special.”
Taulava may be considered by many in the twilight of his illustrious professional career, but he will be the first to dispute any such allegation. “The legs still feel like they’re in their twenties,” the 2003 PBA MVP exclaims. “I’m going to keep playing until the legs realize my real age!”
Menk on the other hand, has always looked forward to the day when he would finally team up with Taulava for a title run: “We always talked about playing on the same team in a league,” says the 2004-05 PBA MVP. “Now that we’re a little older, we finally get to fulfil that dream, and hopefully win it all together.”
Freeman, 27, is already considered a burly veteran of international competition. After shaking the Philippine basketball landscape by copping the 2009 and 2010 PBA Fiesta Conference Best Import plums, he also helped the Patriots win the inaugural ABL crown in 2010. Freeman’s return to the company that first brought him to the Asian limelight four years ago only adds more firepower to an already formidable assembly of cagers with fellow American reinforcement in 6’10” Brian Williams—formerly of the Malaysia Dragons—and starting point guard “The Fil-Italian Stallion” Chris Banchero—a former candidate in the Gilas program.
“This line-up is actually composed of a bunch of former PBA players which makes us highly competitive because many of the guys have already had vast experience before joining the club,” Eala adds, referring to the new core of Leo Avenido, Axel Doruelo, Paulo Hubalde, Michael Burtscher, Val Acuña, RJ Rizada, Hans Thiele, and the aforementioned grizzled duo of Taulava and Menk. Christian Luanzon and JR Cawaling round out the roster.
One notable change in the Beermen’s bench this season is the absence of Parks. The former seven-time PBA Best Import had found a new career as the team's Head Coach and was instrumental in guiding San Miguel to the finals in 2012. Health reasons have sidelined him and former assistant Leo Austria has taken over the reins.
“We miss Coach Bobby,” Austria says. “We will do our best to win for him. He will always be part of this family.”
Sources close to the cancer-stricken Parks report that he continues to battle the disease at the Makati Medical Center. “He is very frail and can hardly speak,” the source said. “But he still asks about the team and even watched the season-opener against Indonesia on TV. Let’s keep praying for him.”
I witnessed the Beermen's tune-up game against the Blaze Boosters in a battle of “sister” teams at Ynares a few days ago. It was anything but a “friendly” with Banchero and Petron guard Chico Lanete almost coming to blows. Despite early foul trouble against Freeman, the Beermen diffused the Boosters and celebrated import Reynaldo Balkman, 89-82 a few weeks back.
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Taulava was astounded on the game’s intensity: “I was surprised at how Petron came at us. They really brought it to us. It was really competitive.”
Many will question if this present crop of Beermen have earned the right to carry the San Miguel name and uphold the time-honoured winning tradition of its PBA conquests. Eala, for one, believes they have.
“I really think they have (earned it),” says Eala. “It’s the players believing in the system and honouring the tradition that makes them true Beermen. This is a special group of men right here.”
It remains to be seen if the Beermen can replicate their feat from their maiden voyage last season. Their first loss has given them a zillion valuable lessons. When the Heat visit Manila in a couple of days, the tables will be turned. It is still a long ABL war, but one thing is certain: The San Miguel Beermen are on a quest to uphold a winning tradition; a tradition that did not happen overnight (the franchise won its first PBA title in 1979, four years after joining the league). It will take a lot of sacrifices, a lot of desire and a lot of belief in each other, but in the end the work ethic I’ve seen in the squad will bring them one step closer to reaping the fruits of their arduous labor.
Asi Taulava said it best: “When we go to another country (to compete) it’s a business trip, not a vacation. We only have six months to work. We can take that vacation after.”
Let’s support the Beermen’s home-opener on Friday as they not only fight to uphold their tradition but also to bring glory to the country. The Beermen could sure use it.
(Follow Noel Zarate on Twitter: @NoelZarate)
