JEDDAH, 22 March — The Safari-Metal Work Friendship Games owning up to the distinction of being the longest basketball event in all of Jeddah is finally over as Watani-Gillette Mach3 made SBA-JADE history by becoming the double champions. The blademakers defeated a gallant and hardfighting Jungleland Mersal crew, 64-54, in the fated third game of the championship series, where the reversal of fortune hinged on the loss of Mersal’s key player going to the last two minutes of the game.
The recently-concluded Friendship Games was a Safari Basketball Association undertaking that enjoys the solid backing of the Jeddah All-Sports Development (JADE) with SCL project manager Engr. Abdullah S. Al-Shamasi and Metal Work Co. represented by its managing director Engr. Ali M. Badreddine as the principal sponsors. International Food & Consumables Co., exclusive distributor of Snapple Juice, Al-Hussaini & Co., the exclusive distributor of Seiko watches in Saudi Arabia, Basamh Trading (Goody snacks) are the minor sponsors. Individual sponsors include Safari finance manager Kamal Rizgalla Essa, Zain Ahmed Alawi Fadaq, Mohammed Abdul Majeed, Raouf Al-Yamani and IAP senior engineer and JADE general adviser Chris Bain.
Approaching the last two-minute mark, Gillette held on to a slim 52-51 lead and Mersal had a chance for an all-important go-header but the Maroons’ Alvin Bautista misfired from three-point range. Compounding their woes further, teammate Winston Sepulchre in an effort to retrieve the ball had a vicious attack of cramp prompting him to be lifted out of the court. Sepulchre had earlier been the biggest stumbling block for the blademakers as he was able to silence the guns of Leo Almoite but once Sepulchre was eased out of the scene, Almoite put on an almighty finishing kick and the championship was clearly in the bag.
Gillette’s trek to the championship was colorful and not controversy-free. One of the most defining moments came in the sudden death crossover semifinals where they almost met death face-to-face against the savvy Miyabe-Abe squad of team manager Jag Malit and coach Ed Cunanan. Miyabe Abe had the chance to wrap up the game and proceed to the championship but two of its finest cagers in the team, Renz Chao and Gary Talastas bungled all four free throws one after another in a spate of only twenty seconds before the buzzer. The score was actually tied 60-60 after the missed free throws and all indication seems to head for overtime when tragedy struck.
With time winding down to zero, there was a glut in the middle of the court when two almost indiscernible sounds came tailing each other: a referee’s whistle and the game buzzer. JOG referee Obet Orellana motioned there was a foul committed in the play pointing to Talastas as the culprit. Both teams were in penalty situation and the main contention of the moment was: was there still time left in regulation when the foul was committed?
A rambling confusion gathered at the committee table. SBA vice-commissioner and acting timekeeper Rafael A. Jarme signaled there was no time, to the relief of Miyabe Abe bench but it was a temporary sigh. Jarme, put on a very compromising situation, went on to clarify there was no time left in the game, naturally at that exact point of time. But he hastened to add that the sequence involving the call made by referee came before the buzzer thus, the recipient of the foul from Gillette team was entitled for two penalty throws.
That decision stood as JOG head referee Peter Ronatay seconded the timekeeper’s decision. The fouled player, who it turned out was Leo Almoite took to the line, sank the first and pandemonium struck. Miyabe Abe walked out whining in protest. The loss was a bitter pill to swallow.
Jungleland’s championship appearance came as a tale straight from Camelot and worthy of a subplot, “Against All odds”. They were the youngest team and the team that has the least upgrade done in the Friendship Games as other teams who were considerably upgraded with three to five players conspired in blocking Mersal’s effort to get the services of at least two calibre players. Savvy power forward Pat Cecilio was the lone upgrade inserted into their lineup.
Their semifinals opponent Michelin-PD, while they themselves had gone to acquire almost half of the disbanded Safari Selection plus an outsider to boot vehemently protested the inclusion of Alex Vidal and Andy Batayola for Mersal. They argued that the duo even though officially listed in Mersal’s lineup did not show up in the elimination and are ineligible to play. Gillette and Miyabe Abe seconded the notion. Even then, Jungleland showing a sterling brand of basketball repertoire came through in the dying minutes to punish the remaining host team, and set a championship date with Gillette.
A classic match ensued in the first game of the championship series and in fact some were regretful that the game was not captured via handheld cam for posterity. The captivated audience swore it was one of the finest live basketball match theyíve seen in years and players and supporters of both contending teams agreed it was. The game went into double overtime and when Gillette got the lucky break, people still wanted more of the grinding, heart-pounding actions unfolding before their eyes.
The second game had Mersal leading 29-19 ending the first quarter when the game was halted by rain. Jungleland went on to win by a large margin 71-58 on the resumption of the game setting up the third and final encounter.
