KSA - Explosive Friday - Al Zahrani vs NPC

DAMMAM (EPBL) - Coach Gil Rivera and his NPC squad are ready to take the court again. Not against their old rivals but against a new franchise that is rocking the Eastern Province Basketball League - Rated Class Division by storm- the Bong Paragas Al Zahrani squad, in an explosive exhibition game Friday.

Game time is 2:10PM at the Al-Ettifaq Club.

National Pipe Company will be the more-rested team, having wrapped up their last game appearance against crowd drawers ARCC-EEI three months ago while the Zahrani five is growing stronger and stronger, exuding confidence and have gone undefeated in the on-going season.

The multi-titled NPC will parade its veterans anew led by their awesome trio of former PBA stars - San Miguel forward Arnold Calo, former MBA - Pangasinan Presidents stalwart Anthony Nabong and Ex-PBA - Purefoods guard Jessie Cabanayan. The trio is supported by an all-star cast of varsity players in the likes of former NU - Bulldogs Romwell Lampitoc, Assumption University MVP Jordan Sinio, Tarlac State's Edgar Bucalin and Ramesh Ordan, MLQU's Manuel Misola, PMI's Nicanor Ramos and former RP Youth member Ernie Bagay.

NPC will also parade their new recruits on TIP's Manuel Mediavillo and center - forward Batangas pride 6'2" Brian Matanguihan.

Coach Gilbert Mejarito and Rodello Paragas of the Zahrani team likewise have an all-star varsity player's squad with their fresh recruit of 6'3" Tapal King, Mark Pagayanan of Adamson University Falcons and NU Bulldogs six-footer Roberto Iguadala.

The battle-tested Zahrani's will heavily rely anew on Palarong Pambansa MVP guard Michael Bombita, PSBA forward 6'1" Lesther Mendoza, University of Batangas Julius Consignado and Glenn Tubeo and Lyceum University silent operator Angelito Singyan.

The Zahrani's are also supported by a core of varsity teammates in Nueva Ecija University of Science and Technology (NEUST) forward Paul del Rosario, Leonillo Gonzales and Edgar Sennido together with Assumption College of Pampanga's big man 6'1" "El Capitan" Nolan Nuguid and 6'2" Jonathan Punzalan. Rodel Pacheco of Wesleyan University and University of Mindanao "Timebomb" Francis Lapara completes the cast.

Now that the time has come, Bombita and Mendoza's leadership ability and contagious confidence will be needed to support the rest of the team that keeps getting better by the day.

However, NPC has a lot to say about the game's final outcome - a Zahrani win - not with Calo's inside play who also played brilliantly in with PBL-Blu Detergent whose colorful stint earned him the Most Defensive Player and Most Improved Player prompting San Miguel (PBA) to acquire him; not with Nabong's rebounding ability who was the Best Center in his varsity days, not with Cabanayan's tenacious leadership and booming 3's who was an MVP of the University of Baguio, and not with an entire NPC that never had any reason to believe in anything other than winning.

"We've gone through so much in our 20th season," stressed Commissioner Ricky Piguing. "For some reason we sought each other out and the emotions took over, and we come up with the idea for the clash between two of the best teams in the region, it's definitely a huge match up. It's going to be a battle. It's going to be a showdown," he added. "This exhibition game is for the fans of EPBL, the bottom line is the Zahrani's are undefeated in the team standing and they had two new recruits and therefore we feel they have earned the right to face NPC being the long-time pride of EPBL" he added.

By Romeo O. Navidad
FIBA Correspondent in Saudi Arabia