Despite missing the services of key players Will McAloney and Eman Calo, home team Nueva Ecija was still able to carve out a convincing victory against Mindoro, 79-68, Saturday night in the Sixth Season of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League at the Calasiao Sports Complex.
The Rice Vanguards of Nueva Ecija turned to Rob Celiz, who had a steady game, finishing with 16 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field.
Celiz’s solid presence at the low block allowed the Rice Vanguards to score 44 points inside the shaded lane, half more than the output produced by the Tamaraws, who were also beaten by their rivals on bench points, 33-43.
McAloney and Calo went home in Cebu to spend time with their respective families, according to head coach Don Dulay, but their absence hardly had any effects on the level of play of the former MPBL champion, which also made a good finals run in the recent PSL President’s Cup where the Rice Vanguards, carrying the moniker Capitals, entered the championship round but lost in four games of their best-of-five titular showdown with the Quezon Titans.
The Rice Vanguards posted their second consecutive win, but Dulay expects his team to play much better as the tournament progressed as the team will have more time learning the system of the multi-titled coach, who led Davao Occidental to championships in the MPBL and PSL, then brought his winning act now with his new team.
Dulay took over as head coach of Nueva Ecija during the late stretch of the PSL President’s Cup, replacing Jerson Cabiltes.
In building up for the MPBL, Dulay believes the Rice Vanguards had to retool their roster and they found a good mix of players from the PBA and the collegiate ranks and allow Dulay to plan ahead on his vision for the team.
“We expect to be a better team, with our new reinforcements. We have become more of a defensive-minded squad,” wrote Dulay via Messenger to Pinoystep.com. “We wanted to do both (keep the core and get new, young players).”
The Rice Vanguards were able to sign up young PBA journeyman guard Jasper Ayaay, veteran guard Ryan Costelo, former Batang Gilas big man JB Bahio, former Adamson dead shot Vince Magbuhos and second generation cager Andrei Duremdes, whose athleticism was one of the best traits he inherited from his great dad, former PBA Most Valuable Player and now current MPBL commissioner Kenneth Duremdes.
Against the Tamaraws, Ayaay produced nine points and pulled down seven rebounds while Magbuhos contributed six.
