An Archer's Chronicle

Wednesday, January 24, 2007

Triple Towers

By Cristine Antonette B. Catu

Three of the tallest players in La Salle Green Hills’ PAYA Mini prove that they are not just big boys…


For this year’s Mini batch, Coach Hubert de los Santos was particularly looking for shooters in the mold of towering 5-foot-7 power forward Karl Angelo de los Santos and 5-foot-8 centers Rodel Joven and Adam Narciso. The coach of the Mini Basketball Tournament knows that his biggest challenge is to make the most of every opportunity for his young though talented bunch of dreamers. In short, he is transforming the team into a legitimate title-contender, a team that can stay in the hunt.

As feared big boys in the league, these sixth graders were not just players in the court but they were also players in the academic honor roll or various school clubs. As a matter of fact, De los Santos is a consistent top 5 achiever and holds a position in the Student Council Organization. Apart from basketball, his well-rounded athletic personality in a manner bespeaks of his enthusiasm for other sports such as golf, taekwondo, badminton, and swimming. Meanwhile, Joven is also a competitive soccer player while Narciso has musical appreciation for rock fusion, a genre close to his heart. Narciso will also be representing the country in a basketball competition that will be held in Las Vegas and Los Angeles in the US this coming summer.

Given the good height, it was natural for the three boys to get inclined in the nation’s favourite sports. However, Narciso says he owes his love and skill in playing basketball to his parents - Rudy and Chila. On the other hand, De los Santos and Joven enrolled in a basketball clinic to learn the basics.

Having the height advantage, De los Santos, Joven, and Narciso challenged other tough players in various leagues. Delos Santos played for the Coach E Basketball Team in the International School Invitational League, while Joven made it in the Private Schools Basketball League (PSBL) and PRADA. On the other hand, Narciso ruled it in the Futures Basketball League (FBL), Coach E Basketball Tournament, Small Basketeers of the Philippines (SBP), PSB, or even in the Junior PBA Basketball League. Dominance entails confidence and these players already fitted in and adjusted well to the Archer system that is why the players of the opposing teams [Xavier, Southridge, CSA, BIS, Ateneo, Claret, LSQC, and ALLS] expect to see more from them.

Apart from all these, what do these big boys have in common?

CHERIFER!

To maximize their growth potential and to strengthen their immune system, they admit that they regularly take Cherifer PGM.

De los Santos revealed to Animo that he started taking Cherifer when he was still 5 years old. “I was small and thin then, so my mother bought the product to improve my growth. She got to know Cherifer through print ads. In no time at all, I grew tall for my age,” he says.

Joven and Narciso tried and tested the product a year ago when they saw it in a TV commercial. Which is why they are hell-bent on taking a growth enhancing multivitamin like Cherifer that would result in an exaggerated height increase: for Narciso from 5’3 to 5’8 and for Joven from 5’6 to 5’8. It also further supports the improvement of their vision and coordination of visual, mental and motor skills.

But right now, nothing excites the big boys more than mapping their future basketball, and of course, winning in the PAYA Mini Basketball Tournament.

De los Santos’ favourite team is the San Antonio Spurs because he likes the way their power forward—Tim Duncan—plays. Joven, the Michael Jordan fan, admits that he has been training hard to adapt to his new role. For his part, Narciso, whose favourite player is Allen Iverson of Denver Nuggets, believes that he constantly has to improve on his game.
Surely, the Mini PAYA batch has a lot of big shoes to fill, and expectations abound as early as now… Getting the basket

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