After reaching the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League's Southern Division Finals last season, the Batangas City Embassy Chill is leaving no stone unturned in its quest to return to past glory.
Head coach Cholo Villanueva shares, "We start from the ground up. It’s back to zero. It doesn’t mean that because we were in the division finals last year, we’re guaranteed to be in it again this year."
Villanueva wants to see some more composure from the squad down the stretch, especially when it has a large lead at its disposal. He shares, "Knowing how to execute and finish the game strong are things we need to improve on this year."
In addition, the La Salle alumnus is hoping for the team to set a quicker pace while at the same still maintaining its defensive identity, especially against bigger opponents.
Roster-wise, Batangas City retains its core of Rudy Lingganay, Jeckster Apinan, Cedrick Ablaza, John Rey Villanueva, and King Importante, while making three signings.
Team manager Jean Alabanza says, "After last year’s performance, we assessed the needs of the team. We added another guard CJ Isit, who can help with our guard rotation. We also added two versatile for-wards, Oneal Arum and Raffy Oktubre. Overall, we should be better than last year with these additions. They can also help us achieve what Coach Cholo wants to develop, that is playing at our own pace."
Villanueva adds, “Last year, we were number two in our division. We want to be number one this year, so we can’t give games away. If we have a chance to win every game, we’ll make sure to win it.”
Batangas City will kickstart its season on March 14 against Pasay at its home court, the Batangas City Coliseum.
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