Guevarra, Romeo repeat as champs
REY GUEVARRA of Meralco and Terrence Romeo of GlobalPort etched their names in the history books of the PBA All-Star Week’s sideshows by repeating as Slam Dunk and Three-Point Shootout champions, respectively, last night at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Romeo turned back KG Canaleta of Mahindra and RJ Jazul of Alaska in winning the Three-Point Shootout crown for the second straight year, tallying 20 points in the final round, to join only four others in winning the event at least twice, counting all-time great Allan Caidic.
Guevarra was the Slam Dunk champ for the third straight year, nipping teammate Chris Newsome, 97-96, in the final round which saw him jump over 6-foot-7 Rain or Shine center Raymund Almazan and Jericho Cruz in the second round.
Guevarra joined Canaleta as the only men to win the event at least three times.
“It was a tough contest, because (Canaleta and Jazul) are also capable of winning,” Romeo said. “I was nervous all the way.”
Canaleta, a former five-time Slam Dunk champion who developed one of the most lethal outside shots in the league in recent years, and Jazul, netted 17 each in the final round. He judged in the Slam Dunk contest.
Canaleta, though, earned some consolation of sorts by writing the new all-time mark in the competition—26 points—in the preliminaries.
The old record was 24, which Romeo matched in qualifying No. 2 for the title round.
Rain or Shine rookie Maverick Ahanmisi timed 32.95 seconds and was crowned as the new Obstacle Challenge champion after nipping Carlo Lastimosa of Blackwater.
The tallest among the 12 participants at 6-foot-2, the Elasto Painters point guard won despite needing two overhead bounce passes to complete the course.
Lastimosa, who dethroned defending champion Jeric Fortuna of GlobalPort in the first round, clocked 34.11 and lost some valuable time when he missed the first shot on the course, the layup.
The centerpiece All-Star Game pitting the North against the South will be played tomorrow at 7 p.m., with Rain or Shine’s Yeng Guiao calling the shots for the North and Leo Austria of San Miguel to mentor the South.
