STREET SPORTS: MPBL Negros Derby

July 21, 2023

The much-awaited Battle of Negros finally took place last June 13, with the Negros Muscovados taking down the Bacolod City of Smiles, 102-88, at the Batangas City State Gymnasium. Jason Melano topscored with 23 points while Jun Manzo added 18. Both players hit big shots down the stretch as the Muscovados pulled away from a tight game in the 4th quarter to win the contest. Donmark Matillano had 17 points while Mark Sarangay chipped in 14 for the City of Smiles, who were missing leading scorer and hotshot Val Chauca due to an injury.

As of mid-July both teams have a 7 win 12 loss record, tied for 10th and 11th place, still 1 game out of the final 8th spot in the Southern Conference playoffs. Both teams have improved on their 4th quarter execution and have picked up some wins as a result to close the gap down on the 8th position and last playoff spot of the playoffs. The Muscovados have been relying on Manzo to orchestrate the plays in crunch time and sometimes would dump it into the post to big men Melano and Bernie Bregondo. The City of Smiles, on the other hand, have been leaning on shooter Donmark Matillano for scoring in the absence of Chauca. It would have been a great treat for the local fans, though, if the Negros Derby would have been held in a venue somewhere in Negros or Bacolod City, like the Saint La Salle Coliseum or the STI-West Negros Gym, instead of it being in a neutral venue.

– – – – –

After being benched for the first 3 games, Kai Sotto made his much awaited NBA Summer League debut for the Orlando Magic against the Portland Trail Blazers last Thursday, July 14. Coming in at the start of the second quarter, he scored 6 points, grabbed 4 rebounds, and blocked 3 shots in 13 minutes of play, even blocking Portland’s high-flying guard Shaeldon Sharpe. It was a good NBA debut for the 7 feet 3 inches tall Sotto, who is hoping to become the first ever homegrown player to play in the NBA. In his second NBA game however against the Boston Celtics 2 days later he was held scoreless with 2 rebounds and 1 assist and shot 0-for-3 from the field in 8 minutes as he played with a bad back and was pulled out of the game in the second quarter. In my opinion, Sotto has the potential to become a regular player in an NBA roster. Defense as well as rebounding would be his first ticket of entry into the NBA, as blocking shots seems to be a strength of his. However, he would need to improve on his offense overall and needs to add the medium range and 3-point shot to his arsenal, as he would be up against the likes of centers Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid, and Anthony Davis if he ever makes an NBA roster as banging bodies and trying to score in the post against them would be a tall and difficult order. He also needs to bulk up in weight as well as improve his strength and conditioning to be able to withstand the fast pace of the NBA.

The San Antonio Spurs have drafted highly-touted French teenage phenom Victor Wembenyama as the number 1 overall draft pick in the 2023 NBA draft and he has attracted a lot of attention since his arrival in the United States. The most high-profile No 1 draft pick since the drafting of Lebron James in the 2003 NBA draft, Wembenyama stands 7-feet-4 with an 8-foot wingspan and can play like a guard wherein he can put the ball on the floor despite his height. He can also hit the 3-point shot. In his first NBA game during summer league against the Charlotte Hornets, he struggled with all the spotlight and attention on him, scoring 9 points while shooting 2 of 13 from the field. He did have 5 blocked shots as the Spurs beat the Hornets, 76-68. He improved in his second game against the Portland Trail Blazers, scoring 27 points on 9-for-14 shooting from the field, grabbing 12 rebounds and blocking 3 shots. He made several key shots late but the Spurs lost to the Blazers, 85-80. Quite an up-and-down summer league for the number 1 overall pick. The Spurs then shut him down for the remainder of the summer league to avoid injury and prepare for the real thing which is the NBA season. If there is any room for improvement, I think he needs to bulk up in weight as he only weighs 210 pounds for someone who plays the center position. He also seems to fall down a lot when being bumped and was having trouble in the post when defended by bulkier centers. But I think the hype and expectation surrounding Wembenyama seems to be a real one and it will be fascinating to watch him when the real season begins.*

Pio Alessandro S. Ozoa is a graduate of BS Computer Science at USLS. A big fan of sports, especially basketball. A late bloomer when it comes to playing the game, he watches sports on livestream often as a deviation from the stress and pressure of everyday life.