•Ang lagay ng puso, career atbulsa mo malalaman na sa BILOGANG BOLA page 7

•UAAPFENCINGACE ManoahBaal page 3

MAN IN THE MIDDLE:Greg Slaughter dunks against FEU’s RogerPogoy. —page 4-5 AUGUST DELA CRUZ

—page 7

VOL. 1 NO. 3 • JULY 12-19, 2012

JUDY BEA

MURIEL APPLEAPPLE

2 JULY 12-19, 2012

BIBLE STUDY SECRET WEAPON

Bulldogs areready to biteBy Randolph B. Leongson

T HERE could not have been a more perfect timefor National University to host the UAAP.

has ever had, the NU Bull-dogs looked poise to shed

their cellar-dweller tagand perhaps even take

the crown in thecenterpiece men’sbasketball wars toend the school’s

58-year titledrought.

TheBulldogs

lasttastedtheUAAP

men’s basketball championshipin 1954 and has struggled toput together a winning programdespite being home to suchprized finds as two-time PBAMVP Danny Ildefonso andLordy Tugade.

But a great triumph just be-fore the UAAP season might bea great sign of things to comefor the boys from Jhocson St.

After a sensational campaignin the Filoil Flying V Preseason

Hanes Cup, where they won thetitle, the Bulldogs, with multi-ti-tled coach Eric Altamirano

In his second year at thehelm and superstar Bobby RayParks leading the charge againfor the boys in blue and gold,are not just out for a shortchampionship fling but a long-term winning attitude.

“We’re trying to create a win-ning culture,” said season ’74MVP Parks, “It’s a chance for usto make history against themore prominent teams, eventhough we only come from asmall school.”

Parks sees a vast improve-ment in the team from last year,with the eight rookies then fi-nally forming a palpable chem-istry with the rest of the team.

Even Cameroonian playersHenri Betayene, who will suitup for his first year in a Bulldogjersey, and Emmanuel Mbe,who will play his last season forNU, have been showing whatthey are made off, boosting

their confidence for this year’scampaign.

“Jean (Mbe) was fouling a lotlast year, but you can see thathe is definitely improving in hisgame, both offensively and de-fensively,” said senior AjeetSingh.

Mbe, who was named Filoil’sBest Defensive Player, sees theimprovement brought by thediscipline inculcated by coachAltamirano to the team. The 20-year-old center has also adjust-ed well in the country, even say-ing, “I feel like I am a Filipino!”

Another revelation for theBulldogs is the guard combo ofplaymaker Gelo Alolino andshooting guard Mark de Guz-man. Alolino paced the Bull-dogs with his crisp passes whilede Guzman, a transferee fromthe College of St. Benilde,torched foes with his sweettouch from rainbow countrythat helped NU in an undefeat-ed 11-game run in the Filoiltourney.

Both of them note the pro-gram Altamirano prepared forthe team has really helped thema lot, on and off the court.

“Everybody has the right to

Parks eyes winning cultureUAAP Season 74 Most ValuablePlayer. Gold medalist in the 2011SEAG as a part of the nationalteam. 2012 Filoil Flying V Presea-son MVP. What more can the sen-sational Bobby Ray Parks Jr. hopeto accomplish this season?

“To create a winning culturein our small school,” he said.

This might be the Parks’ ownway of humbly saying “the UAAPchampionship.” After all, the 6-foot-4 small forward has been theleader of the pack for this season’shosts National U, a universitywhich is experiencing a 58-yeartitle drought and is on a quest toremove the tag of “the whipping

boys of the UAAP”.A tenacious player on both

ends of the court, Parks hasbeen a polarizing figure for NU,an attitude which makes ob-servers think that the 19-year-old as “mayabang.”

But off-court, the son of PBAlegend Bobby Parks is a soft-spoken vocal leader for the up-and-coming Bulldogs, a role hehas embraced.

“I am motivated to get theteam better for the UAAP andgive our best in every game,” hesaid.

Averaging 18.5 points, 5.5rebounds, 4 assists and 1.2

steals in the preseason tourney,which saw him crowned as theMVP, Parks has made NU a title-contender for the upcomingUAAP season. “I know that I canscore, but we’re playing here asa team.”

A religious man in his ownright, the boy who “came fromMemphis to Manila” has depict-ed his religiosity in his tattoos.He draws his inspiration in ev-ery game from his dad, whotaught him how to handle andshoot the ball at the tender ageof four, and his girlfriend, whopassed away last January.

“Ray-Ray”, as his close

friends calls him, has often gota lot of comparisons to NBAplayers with his monster playson the court, and has not yetruled out the possibility ofbeing the first Filipino toplay in the NBA. “It’s still adream,” Parks said.

“It’s time for NU tochange its perspective.We’re a new team,” Parkssaid. “It’s a chance for usto motivate each otherand to play for schoolpride. It’s a challenge toface the ‘big’ schools, butwe’re accepting that chal-lenge.” Randolph B. Leongson

Fielding what might be the strongest line-up the school

DOUBLETROUBLE: Mbe(left) and Parks.

AUGUST DELA CRUZ

SCHOOL PRIDE: Parks

READY TO BITE /page 8

3

UE’S MANOAH BAAL

By Jonalyn Mae Flores Antonio

L ET’S face it. Basketball players, especially the cuties, never fail to draw atten-tion from their fellow students.Unknown to many, other student-athletes not dribbling the elusive leather, are also worthy of be-

ing admired.Manoah Ball, a key player in the University of

the East fencing team is one example of a non-bas-ketball athlete who is getting ohhs and ahhs fromfans.

Manoah was named after one of the charactersin the Bible Noah. The 20-year-old fencer saw ac-tion for UE the last four years and will try to wrapup his stint in Season 75 by helping the RedFencers win the title.

UE settled for fourth place last year.Manoah started fencing at St. Patrick High

School in Quezon City. He learned the rudimentsof the sport from Ronald Canlas, who’s also coach-ing UE in the UAAP.

Manoah created a storm after winning Rookieof the Year honors in Season 72. He’s UE top betin the foil.

“Kapag malapit na yung UAAP, I worked out tomaintain my weight. Pag kasi walang gamesnadadagdagan ako ng 10 kilos,” said Manoah.

Being a student-player requires lots of disci-pline and Manoah knows that he must manage histime excellently.

“Being a student and a player, kailangan ng dis-cipline talaga. Kailangan mong gawin yung res-ponsibilities mo as a player and responsibilities sastudies,” said Manoah, a third year Business Ad-ministration student.

Manoah also likes to run and watch actionmovies. Horror movies are no-no for him.

While dreaming of playing for the nationalteam someday, Manoah said he was focus on lift-ing UE to the UAAP title.

“We will do our best to finally grab that cham-pionship crown for the whole UE community, ”Manoah quipped.

CROWD-FAVORITEWITH his good looks andtalents, Manoah never failsto attract the crowd.

ROMY HOMILLADA

JULY 12-19, 2012

4 5

UAAP PREVIEW

Ateneo leads the pack butothers are not far behind

By Randolph B. Leongson

T HE 75th season of the UAAP men’sbasketball tournament is upon usand for those saving up for tickets to

the world-class Mall of Asia (MOA) Arena,where a lot of the games will be held,here’s a look at the eight teams that willfight tooth and nail for the centerpiece tro-phy, and their unofficial rankings based ona straw vote by INQUIRER LIBRE’s panel of ex-perts.

Projected rankings in brackets. Last season’s stand-ings and finish in parentheses.

[1] Ateneo Blue Eagles (13-1, Champions)Still the odds-on favorite for the UAAP crown, the

“five-peat” seeking Blue Eagles will again rely on itssolid core of Greg Slaughter and Kiefer Ravena.

The ex-national team player Slaughter is still asteady double-double performer for Ateneo, while thesophomore Ravena is picking up where he left offlast season, even drilling a game-winningjumper against UST in the Filoil PreseasonCup. Tonino Gonzaga and Juami Tiongsonhad a respectable outing in the preseason insupporting Ravena in the backcourt. NicoSalva is still a potent scorer for the blue crew,while JP Erram, Justin Chua, and the returning Op-ing Sumalinog gives Slaughter an ample help in thepaint.

But the most intriguing part of Ateneo’s corewould be the comebacking Ryan Buenafe. The 2010UAAP Finals MVP has slowly gotten his play afterstruggling early in the Filoil Cup. In their final elimi-nation game against La Salle, he led the Blue Eagleswith 21 points and four rebounds in an overtime loss.

With Coach Norman Black making his return tothe PBA at the end of the season, can Ateneo givetheir bench tactician one last hardware before heleaves Katipunan?

[2] NU Bulldogs (6-8, 5th)This year’s UAAP hosts are trying to flip the history

pages and start a new chapter in the cage wars of theleague.

After an undefeated outing in the Filoil Cup, NUlooks primed for the big one. Coach Eric Altamiranosaid that Bobby Ray Parks has emerged as the leaderof this young Bulldog pack, with last year’s UAAPMVP continuing to wreak havoc on the competition,averaging 18.6 points per game in the preseason.Cameroonian Emmanuel Mbe, hailed as Filoil’s bestdefensive player, looks to make a statement in his fi-nal playing year by logging double-doubles for NU.Gelo Alolino, Jeoff Javillionar and Denice Villamorhas also been vital cogs for the Bulldogs, spreadingthe floor with long-range shots as Parks slashes hisway in the paint.

But the biggest revelation for the Bulldogs is the 6-foot Mark de Guzman. The transferee from the Col-lege of St. Benilde has been a deadly shooter fromrainbow country, drilling triples to support Parks andMbe. An evidence of this is his magnificent 4-of-7three-point shooting clip in their gritty victory overthe San Sebastian Stags, when Parks was sidelined,battling flu-like symptoms.

Parks said that they are trying to create a winningtradition for NU. Can this be the year the Bulldogs fi-nally break through?

[3] FEU Tamaraws (9-5, Runner-up)For the past two years, FEU ended up in the losing

end of the UAAP finals. Coach Bert Flores, this season,

would love to end the trend.The losses serve as a bitter memory for the Tams,

more so to 2010 UAAP MVP RR Garcia. But “TheRooster” has proved in the preseason that they areready for another run for the UAAP title. Togetherwith 2010 Rookie of the Year Terrence Romeo, FEU’sbackcourt remains solid.

With the departure of agile big man AldrechRamos, all eyes will be on Anthony Hargrove, the 6-foot-5 transferee from Pennsylvania, to man the paintfor the Tamaraws.

The American gives FEU a presence in the paint,providing the defense in the post FEU badly neededlast season. He will be in the FEU front-court togetherwith forwards

Carl Bryan Cruz, Russel Escoto and the Bringasbrothers, Arvie and Mark.

They say one is enough, and two is too much. Canthe Tamaraws get to the finals for the third consecu-tive time and have the charm to bring the UAAP

championship back to Morayta?[4] UST Growling Tigers (8-6, Semifinalist)The most talked about loss in the off-season for

UST is the departure of energy guy Chris Camus. Butwith a new sports complex erected along España,things are looking up for the Tigers.

The boys of Coach Pido Jarencio are looking to getanother crack for the UAAP title, with team captainJeric Fortuna back to lead UST in his final playingyear. 2009 Rookie of the Year Jeric Teng and formerjuniors MVP Kevin Ferrer will try to silence the criticsand provide the scoring punch the Tigers badly need.A missed Mythical Five opportunity last season forKarim Abdul will be another motivation for theCameroonian, who was a force to be reckoned with inthe preseason. Another positive development for theTigers will be the return of Clark Bautista, who canintensify the patented three-point shooting game ofUST.

Another notable comeback will be that of AljonMariano. The 6-foot-3 forward from San Beda HighSchool led the Tigers in the preseason, averaging 15.1points per game, and recorded 26 points in theirmauling of the UP Fighting Maroons in the Filoil Cup.

[5] La Salle Green Archers (5-9, 6th)A new age beckons for the Green Archers with

Coach Gee Abanilla calling the shots for La Salle, aswell as the entry of scintillating rookies in the La Salleline-up.

Taking his talents to Taft Avenue, the highly toutedrookie from Xavier School, Jeron Teng, is a first-ballotcandidate for this year’s rookie honors, giving whatthe doctor prescribed for the Green Archers. In hisfirst Ateneo-La Salle showcase, he forced overtimewith a clutch triple. The emergence of bruiser NorbertTorres at the post has also been a plus for La Salle,which finished second to the NU Bulldogs in the pre-season tournament. The Green Archers guards are al-so as formidable as ever, with LA Revilla, returningfrom his foot injury, and Ateneo transferee Mark Tallodoing wonders in the back-court.

Almond Vosotros, the former San Sebastian Sta-glets dead shot, will also chip in with his playmakingand shooting skills.

[6] Adamson Falcons (10-4, Semifinalist)The only team to beat Ateneo last season is floun-

dering its way back after losing pivotal parts of lastyear’s line-up.

With the departure of five standouts of its core lastseason, coach Leo Austria is looking for a stable lead-er for this Falcons squad. Alex Nuyles struggled topick up his game in the preseason, but forward EricCamson stepped up mightily for Adamson, whichfailed to register a blip in the preseason radar. JerichoCruz, the apparent heir to Lester Alvarez’ point guardduties for the San Marcelino squad, has also provenhis worth, while Roider Cabrera can still be a deadlyshooter from the three-point line.

Perhaps the biggest pressure lies in the hands of 6-foot-4 Rodney Brondial, the lone center for Adamsonthis season. The third year center from Quezon CityAcademy had a respectable outing in the preseason,once notching a 15-point 10-rebound performance ina late game meltdown against the St. Benilde Blazers.

In a season where the Falcons are practically lick-ing the wounds of their losses, can Adamson play asUAAP’s spoilers or even cop out a Final Four seat?

[7] UP Fighting Maroons (2-12, 8th)It was 26 years ago when UP last won a UAAP

men’s basketball championship. In the eyes of formerUP standout and current San Beda head coach RonnieMagsanoc, that might have been the last time the

THREATALEX Nuyles (right)of Adamson slicesthrough the defenseof NU’s EmmanuelMbe. AUGUST DELA CRUZ

UAAP PREVIEW /page 8

KIEFER OFTHE FAITHKIEFER Ravena isAteneo’s main manin the backcourt.

AUGUST DELA CRUZHIGHLEAPERFEU’sAnthonyHargroveboosts theinside gameof theTamaraws.

AUGUST DELA

CRUZ

STRATEGISTS (from left) Jerry Codiñera of UE, Ricky Dandan of UP, Leo Austria ofAdamson, UST’s Pido Jarencio, FEU’s Bert Flores, DLSU’s Gie Abanilla, NormanBlack of Ateneo and NU’s Eric Altamirano. AUGUST DELA CRUZ

JULY 12-19, 2012

6

AppleDavid

By Ruth Navarra

FriggUera

She eats when sad

Age: 19

School: Miriam College

Height: 5’4”

Year and course: 4th yr. BA Communication

I applied to be a courtside reporter because:

I’ve been a basketball enthusiast since 2006. I wanted to

challenge myself to go to the next level and be part of the

game rather than just watching it.

What I can bring for AdU:

I think I can bring them pride with the quality of reports

that I’ll be making. Since in a way, I have a know-how of

basketball maybe I can give reports that are interesting

and that will appeal to the fans like myself.

To prepare for my new job, I did the following:

I went to Adamson’s team practice to introduce myself

and get to know the entire team. Until now, I attend their

practices to make sure that I am updated with the current

happenings. I interview the players and coaches to get

more in-depth info about the team and their thoughts

about Season 75.

One crazy thing I would love to do this season:

Maybe I could choreograph a simple dance move while

delivering a report.

I can eat Buttered shrimp (I’m a seafood lover) the whole

day.I am good at: playing volleyball. I used to play for my

school during my grade school and high school years.

My beauty routine is: I keep my face clean. I frequently

wash it. I avoid putting too much beauty products on the

face.When I’m sad I: I cry/take time alone. or EAT :)

My favorite song at the moment is: Call Me Maybe. (I

actually made my own music video of it.)

THIS cutie from the University of Santo Tomas

makes sure that all events in the campus are cov-

ered as the Management and Properties DivisionHead of Tomasian Cable Television (TOMCAT)—the

official cable television of UST.Name: Veneris Valerie Joyce M. UeraAge: 19Nickname: FriggCourse and Year: AB Comm Arts, 4th yearI am proud of UST because: of its rich history

and its friendly environment. I love how I instantly

felt that I belong here on the first day of school.If you visit our school, you should eat at:

Kapetolyo in Asturias St and order TenderloinSteak!

My favorite UAAP player is Jeric Fortuna be-

cause he reaches out to his fans and he seems

friendly.What I love doing in my school: I love walking

around the campus and appreciate its good vibes!

There’s just so much to see around that makes me

really proud of being here.My favorite UAAP moment is: the cheerdance

competion because it effectively lifts up our school

spirit!

-Compiled by Ruth L. Navarra

AApppplleeDDaavviidd

Adamson’sCourtside Reporter

JULY 12-19, 2012

7

LIBRA

VIRGO

LEO

CANCER

GEMINI

TAURUS

ARIES

PISCES

AQUARIUS

CAPRICORN

SAGITTARIUS

SCORPIO

Love: Y Career: PMoney:‘

YYHindi manonood crush

mo sa game ninyo

‘‘‘‘Alagaan pera

para lumago

PBagong team

setback sa iyong career

YYHindi ka pa magaling

magsinungaling

‘‘Sumugal sa pag-ibig,

huwag muna sa pera

PPPSa halip i-explain,

ipakita mo na lang

YYYYGusto lang niyang

makauwi ka ng ligtas

‘‘‘‘May bracelet

kang mapupulot

PPUmiwas muna maglaro

sa ilalim ng araw

YYYPara hindi magsabi ng

mali, tumahimik ka

‘‘Walang pang-gimik,

umuwi’t magmukmok

PPKapag hindi mo feel

na tama, huwag gawin

YKung anong puti niya,

ganun kaitim ang budhi

‘‘‘Maliit man ang panalo,

at least panalo pa rin

PPPHuwag istorbuhin

ang sarili—busy ka

YGirlfriend mo may

girlfriend din pala

‘‘‘Matutukso ka

kaya bibilhin mo

PPIpapasa mo bola sa

sarili mo! Good luck!

YYYPara siyang galit pero

ganun lang si coach

‘‘‘‘Tulugan mo muna

bago mo bilhim

PPPPLahat ng tao,

kailangan ng respeto

YYYY‘Be bold’ pero huwag

kang maghubad

‘‘Ubos na ang LPG,

kaya di lalambot karne

PMahahawa ka sa sakit

ng isa sa fans mo

YYYYLove the game at

marami maiinlab sa iyo

‘‘Kapag tumalon,

laglag barya sa bulsa

PPPPMasayang maglaro

kung masaya ka

YYAy tanga! Sarili mo

lang pala ka-txt mo

‘‘‘‘Nasuklian ka na nga,

susuklian ka pa uli

PPPNakakatakot humawak

ng malaking project

YPanira na sa laro yang

bawal na relasyon

‘‘‘Yayaman ka sa pagtinda

ng sintas ng sapatos

PPPPPKakuwentuhan mo

lang, ire-recruit ka na

YYYLilipat siya sa school

mo, makasama ka lang

‘‘Magastos talaga

magpaganda

PPPPPMasaya ka na diyan

kaya hindi ka aalis

Bilog ang Bola Ni Hormel Delata

UST’s Tina Marasigan

FEU’s Judy Saril

NU’s Muriel Orais

DLSU’s BillieCapistrano

UP’s BeaFabregas

UE’s Katz SalaoUE’s Katz Salao

Adamson’sApple DavidAdamson’sApple David

Ateneo’s SelinaDagdagAteneo’s SelinaDagdag

JULY 12-19, 2012

OOOOEditor in Chief

Chito dF. dela VegaDesk editors

Dennis U. EroaFrancis Ochoa

Romel M. LalataGraphic artist

Ritche S. SabadoTelephone No.:(632) 897-8808

connecting all departmentsFax No.:

(632) 897-4793/897-4794E-mail:

libre_pdi@inquirer.com.phAdvertising:

(632) 897-8808 loc. 530/532/534Website:

www.libre.com.phAll rights reserved. Subject to thecondi-

tions provided for by law, no articleor photograph published by

INQUIRER LIBRE Varsity Action may bereprinted or reproduced, in whole or in

part, without its prior consent.

ANG love, parangopen manhole,nanahimik kangnaglalakad taposbigla kang mahuhu-log.

—kinuha sa tweet ni@TagalogQuotes.

Salamat po

8

State University hadan able body who canman the post, BenjieParas.

This year, the Ma-roons might beg todiffer. Parading bigmen like holdoversPaolo Romero andNigerian Alinko Mbahand rookie MatthewChris Ball, the Ma-roons will now have afighting chance in thepaint to go along withtheir scorers, like theoft-trigger happyMike Silungan. AlvinPadilla, Mark Lopezand Jett Manuel willprovide additionalscoring options in thewings for coach RickyDandan.

The biggest sur-prise for UP in thepreseason is theemergence of WestNegros recruit RaulSoyud. The 6-foot-4slotman has surprisedmany in the FiloilCup, averaging sevenpoints and five re-bounds, not countingthe defensive pres-ence he provides inthe paint.

Another player towatch out for? For-mer PH Youth stand-out Henry Asilum,who could providebackcourt stability forthe Maroons.

[8] UE Red War-riors (3-11, 7th)

Still feeling the ef-fects of losing its bestplayers in the past

three years, the UERed Warriors has notseen much successwith coach JerryCodiñera being itsbench tactician.

But with not muchexpectation to live upto, wingman Jay-RSumido, one of thethree remainingmembers of the Sea-son 72 runner-up UEteam, can have apressure-free stintleading this Red War-rior crew. Sophomoreplaymaker RoySumang has emergedas UE’s best scorerand, as shown in thepreseason, the War-riors can get scoringand defensive bingesfrom JM Noble fromtime to time.

Third-year forwardAdrian Santos couldbe the X-factor for theRed Warriors. The 6-foot-3 UE HighSchool standout haspicked his spots onthe court, and has ef-fectively become UE’sprime post player. Inan upset over eventu-al runner-up La Sallein the Filoil Cup, henotched a double-double with 20 pointsand 12 boards.

The Warriors willmerely be looking topull off surprisesagainst the otherUAAP teams this sea-son. And hopefully, afew of those wins canmake the team rele-vant this season.

UAAP PREVIEWFrom page 4-5

JULY 12-19, 2012

lead. We listen toeach other,” said the5-foot-11 Alolino.“Being together, we

work as a team. Sabinga ni Coach (Eric),‘it’s not about oneguy. For us to win itshould be a collective

effort from all of us’.”“Malaking tulong

yung bible studynamin every Tuesday,”said de Guzman, “It

gives us the peace ofmind we need to befocused.”

“Iba talaga siCoach Eric. He is only

one of those fewcoaches na sobrangbait. Kahit magkamalika, ’di ka n’ya sisi-gawan. Imo-motivate

ka pa nya,” he added.Altamirano,

though, keeps a cau-tious eye on theirpreseason accom-plishment, knowingvery well the realbattle is yet to befought.

“We’re just hopingthat whatever wegained in the presea-son would be trans-lated in the UAAP,” hesaid.

When asked abouttheir goal in the

UAAP, the simplysmiled. Still, punditsare right on the markwhen they say NU isone of the favorites inthe coming season.

“(With us winningthe Filoil,) we have ahuge bulls-eye on ourback. There are a lotof strong teams in theUAAP. We’re commit-ted on getting theteam better and hope-fully, take NU to thechampionship,” hesaid.

READY TO BITEFrom page 2