Paras, Teng, Ravena, Parks banner 50-man pool for SEA Games, SEABA
Some of the best amateur basketball players in the country have been included in Gilas head coach Tab Baldwin’s pool for the Southeast Asian Games and the Southeast Asian Basketball Association men's basketball competitions.
Baldwin, the successor of Chot Reyes for the Gilas program, decided he also wanted to lead the younger group of guys so that he could familiarize himself with the role of a head coach again. With Gilas and Talk ‘N Text, Baldwin has acted as a team consultant so handling the teams for the SEA Games and SEABA would be good practice for him.
The best talents of Philippine amateur basketball are in the list of the 50-man pool with Cathedral’s Kobe Paras.
The UAAP is well-represented with 17 players led by Most Valuable Player Kiefer Ravena, Chris Newsome, Jaymark Perez, and Jerie Pinggoy of Ateneo, Roi Sumang and Bong Galanza of UE, Mike Tolomia and Mark Belo of FEU, Jeron Teng, Norbert Torres, and Arnold Van Opstal of La Salle, Kevin Ferrer of UST, Matthew Aquino of Adamson, Paul Desiderio of UP, and Glenn Khobuntin, Troy Rosario, and Gelo Alolino from the reigning UAAP champion NU Bulldogs.
Thirteen players were also picked from the NCAA led by MVP Scottie Thompson of Perpetual, Baser Amer, Dan Sara, Ryusei Koga, and Arthur dela Cruz of San Beda, Keith Agovida and Jiovani Jalalon of Arellano, Bradwyn Guinto of San Sebastian, Kevin Racal, Mark Cruz, and Rey Nambatac of Letran, and Tey Teodoro and Jaypee Asuncion of JRU.
CESAFI, the biggest collegiate league of the south, has 10 representatives in Venezer Benzig and Nicolas Magat of UC, Leonard Santillan, Alfred Codilla, and John Michael Abad of UV, and Daryl Goloran, Mark Tallo, Melvin Holper, Jasper Parker, and Adams Mohammed of SWU.
The NAASCU has four entries in Rodney De Leon, Mon Abundo, and Joseph Sedurifa of CEU and Jason Ibay of St. Claire.
From the D-League, Ray Parks, Garvo Lanete, and Allan Mangahas also made it to the list while only NLEX Road Warrior Harold Arboleda was included from the PBA.
Leading the cast for the SEA Games and SEABA would be naturalized center Marcus Douthit.
The Philippines has dominated the men’s basketball competitions in the region.
In ten editions of the SEABA Championship, the Philippines has collected six golds and a silver. It finished fourth in one tournament and did not compete in the other two. Out of the 17 possible gold medals in the SEA Games, the Philippines has 16. The only blemish in its record was a loss to Malaysia in 1989.
This year, the Singapore will host both events, as the SEABA Championship will be from April 27 to May 3 while the SEA Games will be from June 5 to 16.