INQUIRER Sports

ATENEO CENTER RABEH AL-HUSsaini did away with the usual pleasantries—high fives, handshakes—before tipoff, probably showing the UE Warriors a portent of things to come.

The grim thought of the Warriors winning consumed him the past few nights since their loss Game 2 last Sunday. He simply couldn’t wait to get back at them.

“When we lost last Sunday, I never had eight hours of sleep,” said Al-Hussaini, who finished with 21 points and 14 rebounds to lead the Eagles to the title-clinching 71-58 victory.

The 6-foot-6 Al-Hussaini characterized the Eagles’ tenacity, averaging 22.3 points per game and 11.7 rebounds to earn the Finals Most Valuable Player award.

“I just didn’t want a repeat of the 2006 finals to happen to us,” said the 2008 season MVP, referring to the series where the Eagles absorbed a shocking Game 3 defeat to University of Santo Tomas in the Finals. “I knew what JC (Intal), Macky (Escalona) and Doug (Kramer) went through after that,” the 2008 season MVP said.