MANILA, Philippines?Colleague Ronnie Nathanielsz called the other day asking for the phone number of a mutual friend residing in Seattle, Washington.

Ronnie said he needed to confirm conflicting reports about former PBA cager Rudy Distrito circulating in various parts of the United States.

Sacramento-based Dondon Ampalayo, according to Ronnie, received a text message that said Rudy had committed suicide inside his detention cell in Nevada.

Marte Saldaña got an identical message in San Francisco and Peter Aguilar in Kentucky.

Ronnie said phone lines were burning from different parts of the US to Abe King, chair of the PBA Legends Foundation USA, in Seattle, to check out the alarming messages.

Abe, however, was just as in the dark as the next guy. He tried to call other people who might know, but their answers made Abe even more confused.

They said Distrito had been deported to the Philippines.

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As soon as Ronnie was apprised of these unconfirmed reports, he immediately tried to touch base with the Nevada State Prison. He couldn?t get through however and was told that he had to call the following day.

Up to midnight of Friday, Ronnie was still trying to call people in the US and back here who might know, but he always ended up facing a blank wall.

Nobody knew.

Finally, on Saturday morning Ronnie got word from Sweet, Rudy?s daughter, that she had gotten through to her father inside the prison. Which of course goes without saying that Rudy is still very much alive.

Rudy denied that he ever attempted to commit suicide. Ronnie said he got a big laugh out of the whole thing.

What is true is that the Nevada parole board is scheduled to evaluate Rudy?s case a few days from now, Tuesday, Sept. 23 to be exact.

Rudy?s wife Jo and the rest of the family are anticipating that he will be pardoned and then deported to the Philippines.

According to Ronnie though, Rudy would rather stay in the US if he had the choice since his whole family is already based there.

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I used to joke that tickets to an Ateneo-La Salle game are as rare as diamonds, especially when I?m requested to secure one or two for friends.

Now it?s no longer a joke. It is true that tickets to Saturday night?s game between the Eagles and the Archers have become as rare and expensive as a diamond. I just can?t tell how many carats.

I was told that Patron seat tickets sell as much as P25,000 per on the Internet and there are buyers, while upper box seats are sold at P5,000.

If tickets can be sold as high as P25k in the Internet, you can imagine how much higher they can cost at the actual venue?

Question: Is there such a thing as Internet scalping?

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Saturday afternoon on the eve of Game One of the Ateneo-La Salle championship series, I text-messaged a question to former Archer Joseph Yeo and ex-Eagle Enrico Villanueva. I asked them how they felt (when they were still playing in the UAAP) on the eve of an Ateneo-La Salle championship game.

?Nervous and excited because I know that in every DLSU-Ateneo game, especially if it?s a championship match, I will be watched very closely,? said Joseph who became a father very recently.

Enrico said he too felt the same way but magically, once inside the court the following day, he became oblivious to his outer surroundings and totally focused on the game.

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Monette Co, PBA legend Atoy Co?s lovely wife of almost three decades, has a piece of advise to husbands.

Monette writes: ?I always read your pieces in PDI, whether they are about basketball or not. There?s always something interesting to read. It was particularly funny when you wrote about why our marriage is still going strong.

?As I always tell Atoy and other prospective grooms, the most important two words in a marriage is not ?I do? but ?yes dear?. Apparently, it has worked for Atoy and me. We?ve been married for 28 ? years!?