The Jose Maria College (JMC) Kings have come a long way, from an obscure basketball squad to a Mindanao champion.
When coach Cholo Elegino of Holy Cross of Davao College told me about the LYR Mindanao Collegiate Basketball Championships in Tagum, I was a bit impressed to know that Tagum City has now become a venue for a Mindanao-wide basketball tournament.
The tournament was made possible by the LYR Group of Companies and thanks to the Rubinos family for making this a reality.
From what I gathered, there were 16 teams that entered.
IBA College of Mindanao-Bukidnon and Jose Maria College-Davao City advanced to the final while Ateneo de Davao University and Notre Dame of Midsayap College fought for the third spot.
And probably, you already know that the JMC Kings emerged champion recently.
I am a bit more interested on the development of the JMC Kings, who years ago was virtually a newcomer, I think around 2005.
Being a new squad, it was slowly making some waves in the Davao college basketball circuit.
Coach Flordelito “Dodong” Cagampang was one of the reliables of coach Ramon Joven Adriano of the Rizal Memorial Colleges (RMC) Bulldogs and for the Montana Pawnshop, a regular in the commercial leagues. The Montana squad was actually bannered by the Bulldogs, thanks to the good relations of coach Ramon and Montana Pawnshop owner Armando Quibod, who himself loves to play basketball and dine with the players over Lomi at a nearby restaurant after a game.
This is the advantage of teams having coaches who were natural point guards during their playing years. Coach Dodong has that advantage, being trained by coach Ramon to create plays for each game they played. I had the pleasure of seeing Dodong play for my hermano Ramon in the Mindanao Championships of the Philippine National Games (PNG) in Butuan City. It was a lovely sight seeing them play against the best of Mindanao that year.
And there is also the presence of one cool player-turned coach Nicanor “Nick” Serafica, who used to mentor the Montana Jewellers in the Philippine Basketball League (PBL).
Two point guards who are now coaches. As the saying goes, two heads are better than one.
But what is the most important factor in the success of the JMC Kings?
I bet you know the answer.
It’s the huge support of the JMC Management and the school’s founder, Pastor Apollo C. Quiboloy.
You see, Pastor Quiboloy plays the sport too and clearly understands the ins and outs of the sport.
For a team to be successful in its campaign for glory in the world of sports, financial support in building a champion team is of vital importance. Without it, the players cannot get the needed tournament exposure, the school cannot pay the fair and reasonable salary for coaches, there will obviously be the absence of needed equipment and training venue.
In sports, a strong management leader will make those things possible.
It may take some quite a number of years before reaping honours for the school, but because of Pastor Quiboloy’s understanding of the team’s needs, not wants, the JMC Kings can no longer be denied of championship titles.
You’ve come a long way, JMC Kings! Congratulations!
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