MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – The Magnolia Hotshots went on a furious offensive display in the second half to hand the Kia Picanto a 47-point shellacking, 124-77, and their 15th straight loss in the 2018 PBA Philippine Cup at the Araneta Coliseum Wednesday, January 10.

Kia looked like it was in for a competitive clash, even ending the first half with a 49-47 lead, until the Hotshots found their groove in the third quarter with an 18-4 run, sparked by a 8 points from Paul Lee, for a 65-53 advantage.

Magnolia's onslaught continued as it ended the period with another 16-2 blitz to lead by 21 points, 81-60. Lee outscored Kia, which only had 11 third quarter points, with 13 markers in the frame.

The Picanto's misery did not stop there as the Hotshots pushed their cushion to 30 behind Jio Jalalon, who scored 9 points in a 12-2 spurt, 89-69. 

Magnolia, which improved to 2-1, limited Kia to only 28 second half points while scoring 77. 

Kia's loss tied its worst defeat in franchise history, which also came from the Hotshots last September 22, 122-81. 

“This is the start of our first game of the year, and I told my players to start it right,” said Magnolia head coach Chito Victolero. “I think, we were outhustled in the first half. That's why we had a good adjustment in the second half.” 

Justin Melton paced the Hotshots with 23 points, 8 assists and 6 boards while Ian Sangalang had 21 points, 9 rebounds and 2 steals.

JayR Reyes led the Picanto, who remained winless in 3 outings, with 12 points and 12 boards.

– Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Things turned bloody early in the Magnolia-Kia clash as Marc Pingris was left with a busted lip following a collision with Jackson Corpuz.

Pingris caught the ball at the post with 7:35 left in the first quarter when Corpuz went after the rock but instead got a bit of the veteran forward's face.

The impact caused a cut on Pingris' upper lip as he walked on the court with blood dripping on his face and his jersey. He was taken out into the locker room to get patched up before returning to action in the second quarter. 

Pingris finished the game with 6 points, 4 rebounds and two assists.

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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Marc Pingris is bloodied up just five minutes into the opening quarter!<br><br>***<br>For more PBA content, visit <a href="https://t.co/byQOSDgfVE">https://t.co/byQOSDgfVE</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/PBAonESPN5?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#PBAonESPN5</a> <a href="https://t.co/K7MzQg95to">pic.twitter.com/K7MzQg95to</a></p>&mdash; Sports5 (@Sports5PH) <a href="https://twitter.com/Sports5PH/status/951025128225177600?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 10, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> {/source}

– Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – The Singapore Slingers ended Tanduay Alab Pilipinas' 3-game winning streak with a 90-80 victory on Wednesday, January 10, at the Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan.

3 days after their first meeting this season in Singapore, Alab Pilipinas failed to repeat their victory at the OCBC arena which resulted to a overtime victory for Alab. 

Chris Charles led the Slingers with a massive double-double of 27 points and 13 rebounds as he shot 11-of-18 from the field. 

From the Philippines' side, Renaldo Balkman notched a double-double with 24 points and 12 rebounds while passing out two assists and making 5 blocks. 3 other players from the team scored double digits including Justin Brownlee and Bobby Ray Parks who tallied 16 points apiece and Urbiztondo who chipped in 12 points. 

Alab built a comfortable 7-point lead at the end of the first quarter. The Slingers started stronger in the second quarter with a 12-0 run that ended with an Alfred Mandani triple to see Singapore lead by 5 (26-21). 

The home team managed to bring the game to a tie thrice in the second quarter alone, but was unable to garner the lead as Mandani buried another trey that gave Singapore a 4-point lead at halftime. 

The third quarter saw Rico Maierhofer and Justin Brownlee combine for a 11-2 run that tied the game at 64-all heading into the final frame. 

The Slingers managed to pull away the lead in the fourth quarter to as much as 10 points as Mandani scored 11 points in the last 7 minutes including the dagger three with 1:03 left in the game.

Alab Pilipinas now stands with a 3-4 record while the Slingers improve to 4-5 in the ASEAN Basketball League.

The Scores

Singapore Slingers (90) – Charles 29, Mandani 23, Alexander 20, Goh 6, Liew 5, Ng 3, Low 2, Lim 2, Oh 0, Tay 0, Folkoff 0. 

Alab Pilipinas (80) – Balkman 24, Brownlee 16, Parks 16, Urbiztondo 12, Maierhofer 6, Raymundo 4, Celiz 2, Domingo 0, Alabanza 0, Sumalinog 0, Hontiveros 0. 

Quarter Scores: 12-19, 42-38, 64-64, 90-80.

 – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – The Alaska Aces would not go down this time.

After suffering back-to-back losses to open its 2018 Philippine Cup campaign, Alaska finally nabbed its first victory of the season at the expense of the Meralco Bolts, 103-98, at the Araneta Coliseum Wednesday, January 10.

Trailing by 10 points early in the fourth quarter, 74-84, the Bolts made things interesting as they went on a 9-3 run to cut their deficit to 4, 83-87.

However, soon as Meralco threatened to make a comeback, the Aces always had an answer to protect their lead.

Kevin Racal buried two straight treys to retaliate KG Canaleta and Baser Amer's back-to-back treys, 93-86, before Calvin Abueva completed a 3-point play that put Alaska up by 8, 96-88, with only 1:24 left in the game.

Abueva starred for the Aces with 19 points, 9 boards, 3 assists and 3 steals while Vic Manuel chipped in 19 points and 4 rebounds.

Both teams are tied with 1-2 win-loss cards.

– Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Ricky Dandan just made his PBA debut as head coach for Kia but he could not help but feel exhausted following the Picanto’s lackluster play.

Kia was at the receiving end of a 47-point demolition against the Magnolia Hotshots, 124-77, and Dandan, who replaced Chris Gavina two weeks ago, admitted that he feels “tired” after the Picanto absorbed their 15th straight loss bridging the Commissioner’s and Governors’ Cup last year and the Philippine Cup this season.

“I feel that I've been coaching here forever. It's tiring. I feel very tired. I tried to encourage our guys to make a comeback. I tried to use the lineup obviously to no avail,” said Dandan, who had a 4-33 record in 3 years at the helm for the University of the Philippines Fighting Maroons.

The Picanto looked like a rejuvenated team following their 23-point loss to the Phoenix Fuel Masters last December 27 as they led the Hotshots 49-47 at the end of the first two quarters only to lose gas soon as the second half started.

Kia scored only 28 points in the last two quarters and allowed the Hotshots to drop 77 markers. The loss tied Picanto’s worst defeat in franchise history, which also came at the hands of the Hotshots last September 22, 128-81.

“I don't know what happened. I can't explain it. I have to review tape, watch the third quarter and see what exactly happened, but from my recollection, we played according to plan in the first two quarters only to suddenly play differently in the third.”

After losing a combined 70 points in the last two games, Dandan just wants his squad to move on as they aim to crack the winning column when they face the Alaska Aces on Sunday, January 14.

“We need to maximize the roster that we have regardless of who we play and regardless of the situation. I'll say it again - we just have to suck it up and move forward and try to find ways to make the score closer and give us a chance in the end,” said Dandan.

– Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Tanduay Alab Pilipinas suffered a heavy 80-90 loss to the Singapore Slingers in a rematch that put a stop to their 3-game winning streak.

However, for second-year Tanduay Alab Pilipinas star player Bobby Ray Parks, Jr, he deems this dip as a "blessing in disguise" for him as an individual and as a team. 

"I'm just glad that I am able to help the team and the coaches trust me because we have a great group of guys and it's good that that is a blessing in disguise," said Parks. 

Parks recorded a season-high of 16 points while grabbing 5 rebounds, passing out 4 assists and making one steal and one block. 

Since the debut of imports Renaldo Balkman and Justin Brownlee with Alab Pilipinas this season, critics have slammed the abilities of the team's local players – Parks included – even overlooking their contributions to the team's current performance. 

Before the game, Parks quote-tweeted a post from his fan and thanked her for her "unconditional support." The former National University standout highlighted that he has done "what he could do as an individual player" despite his personal numbers not being up "to par". 

{source} 

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Thank you so much for your unconditional support!I know individual numbers hasn’t been up to par but i felt i’ve shown what i could do as an individual player.The Championship is what WE are after and it requires much sacrifice  <a href="https://t.co/v2pWbdKcbc">https://t.co/v2pWbdKcbc</a></p>&mdash; Bobby Ray Parks Jr. (@ray1parks) <a href="https://twitter.com/ray1parks/status/950969755770368001?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 10, 2018</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> {/source}

Parks was one of the 4 players from Alab who scored double digits in the game, becoming a vital cog in the rotation in limiting the Chris Charles-led Singapore squad. 

"Finally, I mean it’s just giving about what the team needs. The imports had their hands full tonight with the other imports so they looked for me to score more tonight," said Parks. 

"I'm glad to see that they trust me and my shots were going in, and my team mates did a great job of just pushing me and telling me to keep shooting and keep shooting."

The reigning ABL local MVP even compared his performance with the team to LeBron James's Achilles' heel as the NBA-great had a losing record of 8 straight games to the Utah Jazz, but his fans do not remember him for that losing streak. 

"LeBron James is not going to be remembered for losing 8 straight games to the Jazz, he would be remembered for everything else." 

Parks says his statements are not intended to put down their talented imports, and that he appreciates their international-caliber skills and knowledge in the sport, which will become beneficial to them in their campaign in the league. 

"We're just playing with some of the best imports in the world to be honest. Balkman, Brownlee, they’re genuines, they're professional to the game. They know the game and they know how to pick up a team, so there's a pedestal right now in this team," explained Parks. – Rappler.com

WASHINGTON, USA - Look out, women's tennis. Serena Williams isn't quite back on tour, but she says she wants more Grand Slam titles and may be an even better player after becoming a mother.

In an interview with Vogue magazine published Wednesday, January 10, Williams also recounts the harrowing medical ordeal she went through after giving birth to her daughter, Alexis Olympia Ohanian Jr, on September 1.

Williams, 36, played an exhibition match in Abu Dhabi in late December but pulled out of this month's Australian Open, saying she was "super close" but not yet playing at the level needed to compete.

She is now eyeing a return to the women's tour at the Indian Wells tournament in March.

Williams, a 23-time Grand Slam champion, told Vogue she is determined to win more major titles and surpass the record of 24 Slams held by Australia's Margaret Court.

"Maybe this goes without saying, but it needs to be said in a powerful way: I absolutely want more Grand Slams," she said. "I'm well aware of the record books, unfortunately.

"It's not a secret that I have my sights on 25," said the 36-year-old Williams.

Williams, who married Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian at a star-studded wedding in New Orleans in November, said being a mother may boost her quest.

"Actually, I think having a baby might help," she said. "When I'm too anxious, I lose matches, and I feel like a lot of that anxiety disappeared when Olympia was born.

"Knowing I've got this beautiful baby to go home to makes me feel like I don't have to play another match," she said. "I don't need the money or the titles or the prestige.

"I want them, but I don't need them," she said. "That's a different feeling for me."

Medical ordeal

Williams told Vogue she had an emergency cesarean section after the baby's heart rate fell dangerously low during contractions.

The surgery went well "and then everything went bad," she said.

Williams, who has a history of blood clots, suffered from shortness of breath the day after the birth and told her doctors she needed a CT scan.

Several small blood clots were found in her lungs, and Williams was put on an anticoagulant.

"I was like, listen to Dr. Williams!" she joked.

More complications followed as intense coughing caused her C-section wound to open and a hematoma was found in her abdomen.

After returning home, Williams said she was unable to get out of bed for 6 weeks.

In the interview, Williams also discussed her rivalry with her older sister, Venus. 

"I know that her career might have been different if she had had my health," Serena said.

"I know how hard she works," she said. "I hate playing her because she gets this look on her face where she just looks sad if she's losing. Solemn. It breaks my heart.

"So when I play her now, I absolutely don't look at her, because if she gets that look, then I'll start feeling bad, and the next thing you know I'll be losing.

"I think that's when the turning point came in our rivalry, when I stopped looking at her," she said. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Renaldo Balkman and Arwind Santos have left their strained relations behind in 2013. 

Now that both players are playing on the same soil again, Balkman would want to take some time to hang out and catch up with Santos. The two haven't gotten a chance to see each other since Balkman arrived in Manila, but the Puerto Rican will be on the look out for the local "Spiderman" Santos. 

"I'll be looking for him," said Balkman. "Man, if you get this message, I'm down here so one day, we go out for lunch and then whatever you want to do, we'll just talk."

Balkman even joked: "If you are ever looking for me, I would give you my number right now but I can't because right now I don't even have a phone number."

After Balkman expressed his desire to return to the PBA eventually, Santos agreed that he would want Balkman back in the PBA – under the condition that he would play on the same team as Santos, despite being the victim of the choking incident. 

"Wala naman problema sa akin," said Santos in a text message to Rappler. "Ang aking lang po, everybody deserves a second chance."

(I have no problem with that. For me, everybody deserves a second chance.)

Balkman gave a positive response to that idea, saying that playing on the same team again would greatly help in their reconciliation. 

"That'd be great not only for him, but for me too you know. Teaming with him again, I go for another run with it," said Balkman "Even throughout the things that happened, that's all in the past."

The Alab import continued to lead the team by recording a double-double of 24 points and 12 rebounds, while dishing out two assists and making 5 blocks. He also suffered his first loss with team against the Singapore Slingers at the Filoil Flying V Arena in San Juan on Wednesday, January 10. – Rappler.com

PARIS, France - Neymar scored a second-half penalty as four-time defending champions Paris Saint-Germain toiled before overcoming 10-man Amiens 2-0 to reach the semi-finals of the French League Cup on Wednesday, January 10 (Thursday Manila time).

PSG were again without leading scorer Edinson Cavani, who also missed Sunday's French Cup rout of Rennes after returning late from his Christmas and New Year break in Uruguay.

Amiens' hopes of springing an upset were heavily undermined by the dismissal of goalkeeper Regis Gurtner on 34 minutes for a foul on Kylian Mbappe after charging out of his area.

And Neymar eventually made the visitors' numerical advantage count by winning and converting a spot-kick 8 minutes into the second half at the Stade de la Licorne.

Mbappe, earlier denied by a fingertip save from Jean-Christophe Bouet, was then thwarted by a combination of the substitute keeper and the crossbar before firing another effort narrowly wide.

Marquinhos also struck the woodwork after connecting with a cross from Giovani Lo Celso, but Adrien Rabiot wrapped up a remarkable 35th consecutive win in domestic cup ties for PSG with a glancing header from an Angel Di Maria corner on 78 minutes.

The goal was given following consultation with the video assistant referee (VAR) - being used for the rest of the competition as a test ahead of its expected arrival in Ligue 1 next season - after goal-line technology failed to award it.

"Our team worked hard but we didn't shine like on Sunday, but we also didn't concede chances. It was easier to win because we played with an extra man," said PSG coach Unai Emery.

PSG will travel to Rennes, who they thrashed 6-1 in the last 64 of the French Cup, in the semi-finals at the end of the month, with Monaco set to host Montpellier in the other last-four tie.

"All teams prefer to play at home. But we will make another trip to Rennes full of desire to reach the final and win the title," Emery added.

Isaac Mbenza scored with 4 minutes left as Montpellier snatched a 1-0 win at Angers, while Adrien Hunou struck twice late on as Rennes defeated Toulouse 4-2.

Monaco became the first side to reach the last 4 of the competition on Tuesday as goals from Thomas Lemar and Adama Diakhaby saw Leonardo Jardim's team overcome Cote d'Azur rivals Nice 2-1 at the Allianz Riviera. – Rappler.com

MELBOURNE, Australia - Players could forfeit their prize money if they retire from first-round singles matches at the Australian Open, under new rules aimed at limiting the early injury withdrawals which have long caused controversy at Grand Slams.

Players will also be able to claim 50 percent of their prize money if they pull out before their first match, an incentive designed to allow a replacement to play instead.

With tens of thousands of dollars at stake just for playing in round one, early injury pull-outs have often caused suspicion at Grand Slams, particularly at last year's Wimbledon.

Eight players retired from the first round at the All-England Club, including the opponents of Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic during the second sets of their matches on Centre Court.

"A player should not go on court if he knows he should not finish," Federer said at the time, while Djokovic noted his opponent, Martin Klizan, even "had issues walking onto court" with a calf injury.

Now, under new rules by the International Tennis Federation (ITF), any Grand Slam player who withdraws after 12 pm local time on the Thursday before the tournament draw will still receive 50 percent of first round prize money. 

Their replacement - a 'lucky loser' from the qualifying tournament - will get the other 50 percent of the first-round prize money.

But players who do not "perform to the required professional standard" in round one, including by retiring, also risk being fined their prize money, the new rules say.

'Couldn't care less'

Australian bad boy Bernard Tomic was fined a third of his $47,500 prize money for unsportsmanlike conduct at Wimbledon, after saying he felt "bored" and "couldn't care less" following a straight-sets defeat on day one.

Any repeat this year and he would lose the lot. 

A similar controversy blew up at the Auckland Classic this week when 4 players pulled out before their opening matches, citing injury or illness.

Simply by turning up, they were eligible for prize money and avoided a fine. Chris Kermode, executive chairman of the men's tour, the Association of Tennis Professionals, promised a shake-up, although he accepted the players' reasons for withdrawing.

"Ranking points, player withdrawals and how we deal with that is something we've got to and are looking at," he told Fairfax Media in Auckland.

In a separate rule change designed to get matches started more quickly, warm-up times will be strictly enforced.

Players will be fined up to $20,000 USD for taking more than one minute after walking on court to get to the coin toss. They will also be restricted to 5 minutes' warm-up time on court, and another one minute before the first point.

However, plans for a shot clock to enforce a 25-second time limit between points have been shelved, and will only be used in the qualifying tournament at Melbourne Park.

New rules reverting Grand Slams to 16 seeds from the current 32 are due to come into force in 2019. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines - If there is one good thing that Norman Black noticed after his Meralco Bolts were dealt a 98-103 loss by the Alaska Aces, their second straight defeat, it is the PBA’s less conservative officiating that allowed increased physicality. 

Fans have been clamoring about the physical play, or the lack thereof, in the league for years now but it was not the case Wednesday night, January 10, as Meralco and Alaska went at in on both ends of the floor.

The physicality came to a head when Meralco’s Jared Dillinger and Alaska’s Calvin Abueva almost came to blows in the third quarter after Dillinger dragged Abueva down from midair following the latter’s hard foul, earning both of them technical fouls. 

“The games are being called a little differently now, they’re allowing a little bit more contact or a lot more contact on the court so we’re going to have to do a better job adjusting to it,” said Black. 

Black, a player known for displaying brawn when he dominated the PBA as an import during the early 1980s, is every bit happy with how the referees let the players clamp down on their defensive assignments. 

“I love it. I’m an old school guy so you can imagine. No harm no foul.”

Alaska head coach Alex Compton could not agree more with Black’s sentiments. Compton, who notched his first win of the season, noted that he likes “the direction the league is going in with officiating.” 

“Naririnig ko sa mga ibang fans, sa mga kaibigan ko dito na ayaw masulat ang kanilang opinyon, the physicality's good. It's good for the game. It's real men going at it,” said Compton.

(I heard from the fans and from some of my friends who do not want their opinions to be written about, the physicality’s good. It’s good for the game. It’s real men going at it.) 

The game was marked by a combined 57 fouls called (25 for Alaska and 32 for Meralco), by far the biggest number of combined fouls called this season, although 7 of those were whistled in the last two minutes for the Bolts in an attempt to trim the deficit. 

For now, Black looks forward to keeping practices physical as well to cope with the PBA’s renewed officiating in hopes of barging into the win column when they face the TNT KaTropa on January 21. 

“We’ll try to make our practices a little bit more physical by calling it a little bit more relaxed that we have in the past. Because before, we used to call everything because that’s the way the games are being called here in the PBA so now we’ll just have to make that adjustment.” – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines – Unbeaten prospect Jayson Mama will headline a pro boxing card in his hometown on January 21 when he faces Michael Camelion at Gaisano Mall Atrium in General Santos City, Philippines for the vacant WBO Asia Pacific youth flyweight title.

The 20-year-old Mama (8-0, 4 knockouts) won gold at the 2015 Palarong Pambansa in Tagum, Davao del Norte in the light flyweight division, and was named Best Boxer of the tournament. He later won another gold at the Philippine National Games' Mindanao qualifying leg that year and promptly turned pro under Jim Claude Manangquil of Sanman Promotions.

Camelion (10-6-1, 8 KOs) of Malaybalay City is 3 years older and has a spottier record, but has fought very tough competition in the 4 years since turning pro, facing title challengers Melvin Jerusalem and Omari Kimweri, plus current IBF strawweight champion Hiroti Kyoguchi. 

“I think it’s a decent test for Jayson on where he is right now as a pro,” said Manangquil, who will promote the event. “If he looks impressive then we will pursue a world title very soon.”

The event is free to the public and begins at 4 pm. The fights will be streamed on Sanman Live through their Facebook page.

Mama, whose twin brother Jerven is also an unbeaten prospect, first came to the Sanman Gym when he was 14. They had been working as cooks at a local barbecue but found their calling in life as boxers. On the weekends, Jayson is a student at Ramon Magsaysay Memorial Colleges. Jerven (3-0, 2 KOs) will face Romulo Ramayan (7-13-3, 3 KOs) in an 8-round flyweight contest on the undercard.

“I chose boxing because Manny Pacquiao is my idol,” Jayson Mama told Rappler before the 2015 Palarong Pambansa.

“Boxing also helps me in my studies. My dream is to become a professional boxer, finish my studies, and help my family through my talent.” 

(VLOG: Pacquiao inspires young boxers from GenSan)

The rest of the card will include a OPBF interim women’s bantamweight title fight between Japan’s Tomomi Takano (10-3, 7 KOs) and Joan Ambalong (6-7-1, 3 KOs), plus Dave Apolinario (4-0, 3 KOs) vs Frankie Batuon (2-5) in a 6-round junior flyweight fight. 

Other fights scheduled are:

Ben Mananquil vs Alvin Bais, 8-round bantamweights 

Jake Bornea Vs Jestoni Makiputin, 6-round bantamweights

Daniel Placeres vs Jp Macadumpis, 6-round junior lightweights

Joey Canoy vs Rodel Tejares, 8-round strawweights

Jhun Rick Carcedo vs Holly Quinones, 6-round junior lightweights

Judy Flores vs Ramil Antaran, 6-round junior bantamweights

 – Rappler.com

LOS ANGELES, USA - Mexican fighter Saul "Canelo" Alvarez has agreed to a May 5 rematch against three-belt middleweight champion Gennady Golovkin, the Los Angeles Times reported on Thursday.

The report said Golovkin's camp was expected to greenlight the bout in "the next few days", noting there was no rematch clause for a third fight in the agreement. 

"It's going to be another great fight, so it'll likely be a natural to do another rematch, but it's not in the agreement," promoter Eric Gomez told the Los Angeles Times at a workout for welterweight title fighter Lucas Matthysse in Indio, California, east of Los Angeles.

"We want to concentrate on getting this (second Alvarez-Golovkin fight) done and then we can talk about a third fight later," added Gomez, president of Golden Boy Promotiions.

Undefeated Golovkin, who was making his Las Vegas debut, and Alvarez fought to a draw in a September 16 thriller that lived up to its hype as a showdown between the top two middleweights in the world.

Kazakhstan's Golovkin, 35, came away from the bout with a record of 37-0-1 with 33 wins inside the distance and kept his World Boxing Council, World Boxing Association and International Boxing Federation belts.

Both he and 27-year-old Alvarez (49-1-2, 34 KOs) said they wanted a rematch. – Rappler.com

SHANGHAI, China - China's two-time Olympic boxing champion Zou Shiming on Friday, January 12 came out fighting from severe eye problems that look likely to end his career, declaring defiantly: "I'm still me."

The 36-year-old, who lost the first defense of his WBO flyweight world title in July, sought immediate hospital treatment last month after suddenly losing much of the sight in his left eye.

Zou and his team said he has now left hospital in Shanghai and there has been some improvement in his vision, but it is still too early to say if he will ever return to the boxing ring and he will need more treatment.

The boxer was admitted to hospital suffering what the state Xinhua news agency said were problems with both eyes, including orbital fractures, with the main concern his left eye.

Zou's team said on Weibo, China's equivalent of Twitter: "Thanks for people caring about brother Ming and thanks to the hospital staff for taking care of him.

"He is out of hospital to rest and is waiting for the next step in his treatment plan."

Forwarding the message on Weibo, Zou wrote: "I'm still me."

Zou's team told AFP that it was too early to say what further treatment he will have but said that he has not had surgery.

"He just got out of hospital and is staying at home to recover. The (left) eye has recovered a bit but still could not be called healthy," a member of his team said.

It has been a turbulent 6 months for Zou.

He suffered a surprise knockout defeat to Japan's unfancied Sho Kimura in July in Shanghai in the first defense of his World Boxing Organization (WBO) belt.

Zou later said that he would "fight until my last breath" to recover the title.

Zou won the vacant flyweight belt in November 2016 in Las Vegas, but since turning professional in 2013 he has largely failed to replicate the dominant form of a hugely successful amateur career that included two Olympic golds and three amateur world titles. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines - Filipino mixed martial arts fighter Geje Eustaquio will have home advantage when he faces Kairat Akhmetov once more the interim ONE Championship flyweight championship on Friday, January 26 at Mall of Asia Arena, the MMA company announced this week. 

The fight will be a rematch of their clash last September, which the Kazakh fighter won by split decision in Indonesia. Eustaquio, known as “Gravity”, trains with Team Lakay out of Baguio City and has a record of 9-6 and will be trying to avenge a defeat for the second time in his career after he reversed a 2015 loss to Anatpong Bunrad last year, also by split decision.

The winner would be the logical next in line to face ONE flyweight champ Adriano Moraes of Brazil.

Akhmetov (21-1) has lost just once, a decision to Moraes in a rematch last August, with 5 wins coming by knockout, 10 by submission and 6 by decision

The card will also feature 22-year-old Joshua Pacio, also of Team Lakay, against Pongsiri Mitsatit of Thailand, while another Filipino fighter Eric “The Natural” Kelly will face off against Brazil’s Rafael Nunes. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines - Globalport Batang Pier sailed over the Rain or Shine Elastopainters, 78-70, for their first win of the season at the Mall of Asia Arena, Friday, January 12. 

Star slasher Stanley Pringle erupted for 29 points, with 20 points coming in the first half alone, to help Globalport lead 41-35 after two quarters. He added 9 rebounds and shot 5-of-10 triples to hold down the fort while waiting for injured backcourt mate Terrence Romeo. 

Forward Kelly Nabong drained a pair of triples entering the second half to vault the Batang Pier up double-digits, 47-37. Rain or Shine mounted a 14-7 response on the back of veteran Gabe Norwood to cut the deficit to 3, 54-51. Sloppy plays marred both teams for the latter half of the third quarter, ending with an Ed Daquioag trey for Rain or Shine to put their deficit within striking distance, 58-56. 

Both teams answered back each other’s buckets for most of the 4^th quarter until Pringle and Bradwyn Guinto pulled away on the fastbreak to put up Globalport, 74-65. Rain or Shine failed to stop the late bleeding as Globalport ran away for good.

Globalport, now 1-2 in the 2018 Philippine Cup, next faces Blackwater Elite on January 19 while Rain or Shine (1-2) is back on Wednesday against the Phoenix Fuel Masters. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) - Blackwater sent Barangay Ginebra crashing back to earth as the Elite handed the Gin Kings their first loss of the season with a 94-77 victory in the 2018 PBA Philippine Cup at the Mall of Asia Arena Friday, January 12. 

Ginebra trailed by just one point early in the fourth quarter following a Mark Caguioa jumper, 63-64, before the Elite went on an 18-6 run, with 8 points coming from Allein Maliksi and 6 from Mike DiGregorio, to bring their lead back to double digits, 82-69. 

A Japeth Aguilar dunk cut Blackwater's lead to 10 with a little over two minutes left in the game but the Elite finished the game off in style with 7 straight markers.  

Poy Erram paced the Elite, who improved to 2-1, with 22 points, 11 rebounds and 4 blocks while Mac Belo also poured in 22 markers, highlighted by two clutch triples down the stretch, to go with 7 rebounds, 3 assists and two steals. 

Allein Maliksi added 17 points, 8 coming in the final frame, on top of 7 rebounds and 3 assists for the Elite.

“It’s going to be something special for our team if we’ll be able to hand Ginebra its first loss this conference and on our part, our first win for 2018. Luckily, we were able to do what we planned,” said Blackwater head coach Leo Isaac. 

The game was tied at 19-all at the end of the first quarter before the Elite outscored Ginebra, 22-14, in the second period for a 41-33 halftime led. 

Blackwater then led by as much as 13 points late in the third frame, 60-47, but the Gin Kings finished the quarter with 10 straight points to enter the fourth down by only 3 points, 61-64.

Greg Slaughter paced the Gin Kings, who dropped to 2-1, with 20 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists. 

Scores: 

Blackwater (94): Erram 22, Belo 22, Maliksi 17, Jose 8, DiGregorio 8, Sena 7, Cortez 4, Palma 4, Marcelo 2, Pinto 0, Cruz 0, Sumang 0 

Ginebra (77): Slaughter 20, Tenorio 16, Aguilar 14, Thompson 12, Cruz 4, Taha 4, Caguioa 3, Ferrer 2, Mariano 2, Wilson 0, R. Aguilar 0. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Phiilippines – Two members of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) became the first bobsledders from Southeast Asia to compete in the prestigious Europa Cup in Austria.

Quoting Consul Thelmo Cunanan Jr, president and CEO of the Philippine National Bobsled, Luge, and Skeleton Association, Incorporated (PNBLSA), the PCG said in a statement on Saturday, January 13, that Seaman First Class Rolando Isidro and Seaman Second Class Jeffrey dela Cruz joined the Europa Cup held at the Olympia Eiskanal in Igls, Tirol, Austria on January 5.

Cunanan, honorary Georgian consul, said the Philippine team got off to a rocky start but rallied and made a successful second run, finishing behind Japan. Germany dominated the event.

Organized by the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF), the Europa Cup is one of the world’s most prestigious and important annual bobsled competitions.

Isidro, the bobsled pilot; and Dela Druz, the brakeman, are assigned at Coast Guard Special Service Office. They were guest participants of the IBSF and Olympiaworld Innsbruck. 

They joined teams from Germany, the United States, Austria, Italy, Poland, Slovakia, Australia, Latvia, Serbia, Romania, Japan, and 2014 Olympic bobsled champion Russia. 

Isidro and Dela Cruz will compete in the Austria Cup and the Tirol Cup before returning to the Philippines In March, Cunanan said.

The Filipino bobsledders, who were assigned with the PNBLSA in a partnership agreement with the PCG,  had trained for the last 4 months at Olympiaworld Innsbruck, the highest sports authority in Austria, which provided the team with technical support and training.

Cunanan expressed optimism about the Philippines’ future success in bobsledding and also in the related sports of luge and skeleton.  

“The objective of the PNBLSA is to further develop this sport and give our athletes more experience in the coming winter games seasons by training and competing in Beijing in 2022 and participating in other international competitions around the world,” he said. – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines - Following Barangay Ginebra’s shock 94-77 loss to the Blackwater Elite, LA Tenorio is taking some consolation in that it revealed the habits they should break moving forward into the season.  

Ginebra, which defeated Globalport in its previous outing in come-from-behind fashion, was on the verge of engineering another comeback win against the Elite as it trimmed a once 13-point deficit to just a point, only to lose gas in the fourth quarter.  

The loss marked Ginebra’s first of the young season and Tenorio is looking at it as a wake up call, especially since they are touted as the biggest threat to San Miguel’s 4-peat aspirations in the Philippine Cup.  

“Just like what I've said last game, ‘yung last game dapat talo na kami doon e and we didn't learn from that. Ngayon kung baga nangyari na ‘yung dapat mangyari na supposedly na ‘yung last game pa so for me I'm looking at this game as a positive sign for us kasi if we win na naman this game parang it will hide again the room for improvement,” said Tenorio after the game on Friday, January 12.

(We should have lost the last game and we didn’t learn from that. Now, what happened is what should have happened last game so for me, I’m looking at this game as a positive sign for us because if we win, it will hide again the room for improvement.) 

“Kasi pag nananalo ka di mo naman papansinin ‘yung mga mali mo e kasi when you're winning. You think you're doing the right thing, diba? So I think it's good for us to see.” 

(If you constantly win, you do not look out for your mistakes because you think that you’re doing the right thing, right? So I think it’s good for us to see.) 

The veteran team Ginebra was outscored 30-16 by the younger team Blackwater in the fourth quarter.

For Tenorio, it is just right that they now realize that they cannot just overcome big deficits whenever they want to. 

“We cannot play this kind of game, especially going to the playoffs and playing top teams. Kung we played against San Miguel or Talk 'N Text or NLEX or whoever Meralco, malamang tinambakan kami ngayon,” said Tenorio. 

(We cannot play this kind of game, especially going to the playoffs and playing top teams. If we played against San Miguel or Talk ‘N Text or NLEX or Meralco or whoever, we would have lost by a big margin.)

Although Ginebra head coach Tim Cone previously stated that his wards still have a championship hangover after they won the Governors’ Cup title last October, the veteran point guard is not one to make it an excuse for their repetitive lethargic starts.

“You know, it's not an excuse anymore kasi we played two games already e. I think it's more of us, the character, the attitude of the team. We think that we can just switch on the game. Pag gusto namin, laro na kami, diba? Hindi pwede ‘yung ganoon, we have to play consistent and we have to play as if we're the underdogs.”

(It’s not an excuse anymore because we played two games already. I think it’s more of us, the character and the attitude of the team. We think we have that switch we can turn on during games. We cannot play like that. We have to play consistently and we have to play as if we’re underdogs.) – Rappler.com

MANILA, Philippines - In the early morning of January 5, Gilas Pilipinas head coach Chot Reyes posted on Twitter his tentative pool for the national team which will represent and host the 2023 FIBA World Cup.

Filipino high school and college prospects aged 16 to 25 years old rounded up the tentative 23-member pool – keyword being “tentative.”

In Reyes’ tweet, he immediately put the disclaimer “By no means final,” which is more than enough motivation for University of Santo Tomas (UST) Tiger Cubs swingman CJ Cansino. And after today’s game, Cansino may just have stored enough fire to unleash in the coming years.

In the 2^nd game of the UAAP Season 80 Juniors tournament’s 2^nd round opening day, the undefeated Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU) Blue Eaglets rose to 8-0 by systematically annihilating the 3^rd-place Cubs (5-3), 78-54.

Led by a balanced attack of newly-selected #23for23 pool member Kai Sotto (11 points, 12 rebounds, 5 blocks), Dave Ildefonso (20 points, 7 rebounds, 3 assists), SJ Belangel (13 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists) and Joaqui Manuel (11 points, 12 rebounds, 3 steals), UST was simply outmatched on both ends of the floor. The Eaglets held the Cubs to 27% shooting as a team as they coasted to the easy victory.

Still, Cansino went down swinging, posting 16 points and 12 rebounds on just 6-of-20 shooting while blanking his 6 attempts from three. Only Vince Dolendo (10 points) also scored in double-digits for UST.

It’s no secret why Cansino is the frontrunner Most Valuable Player candidate in Season 80. In a report by ABS-CBN Sports, Cansino has tallied 100.57 statistical points (SPs) so far after the first round of Season 80 – with averages of 27.6 points, 14.6 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.7 steals. The 7-foot-1 Sotto trailed him big as his runner-up, recording only 74.43 SPs on averages of 12.9 points, 12.7 boards and a league-high 4.9 blocks.

But due to his monstrous and prized height coupled with his all-around talent, the gigantic media sensation is the kid who got the nod in the first roster of the Gilas pool. Cansino, being only 6-foot-1, has to contend with a lot of more polished and recognized guards such as Robert Bolick, CJ Perez, Paul Desiderio, UAAP Seniors basketball champion Matt Nieto and Arizona State University standout Remy Martin.

But all Cansino needs is a chance to prove himself, and an audience to witness what he can bring to the table.

“Isang blessing ‘yung makasama para i-represent ‘yung Pilipinas, “said the 17-year-old. “Siyempre ibibigay ko yung best ko para makapasok ‘dun sa 2023 [pool] na ‘yun. Isang karangalan na makapasok at ma-represent ‘yung bansa natin.” (“It’s a blessing to be included to represent the Philippines. Of course, I’d give my best so I can get in that 2023 pool. It’s an honor to be included and to represent the country.”)

Despite the desire to be selected as an individual for Gilas, he’s not really celebrating the news of his impending acceptance of the league’s highest individual award, especially if it doesn’t translate to wins for UST.

“Siyempre grateful ako na ‘nung first round, maganda ‘yung ipinakita ko pero sana magtuluy-tuloy hanggang sa makapasok kami ng Final 4,” he said. “Bonus na lang sa’kin ‘yung MVP at ang goal ko talaga ay makapasok sa finals at makuha ‘yung championship.” (“Of course, I’m grateful that in the first round, I had a great showing but hopefully that continues until we get into the Final 4. Winning the MVP award is only a bonus for me and my true goal is to enter the finals and win the championship.”)

A natural scorer and unnaturally proficient rebounder with a team-oriented personality? What’s not to like, Coach Chot? – Rappler.com