HALF a century later, the last De La Salle team to win an NCAA men’s basketball championship gathered again and reminisced about the good old days.
Surviving members of that Green Archers team, bannered by the late great scoring machine Lim Eng Beng, celebrated the golden anniversary of their title triumph as they were recognized during the recent 9th One La Salle Night of Excellence.
At least the core of the team coached by the late ‘man in white’ Valentin ‘Tito’ Eduque represented the group in the special event held at the Henry Sy Hall of the De La Salle main campus in Taft Avenue.
READ La Salle win over Ateneo in 1974 NCAA Finals was Lim Eng Beng's proudest moment
Among those in attendance for the golden squad were Henry Brodett, Sonny Dizon, Virgil Villavicencio, Jun Rastrullo, Raul Alonzo (statistician), Peter Ley, Larry Mukhey, Dennis Mendoza, Fred Arrieta, Billy Johnson, Raymond Uy, and Elmo Tong.
Of course, the star of that team was Eng Beng, the prolific scoring guard and team captain who passed away in 2015. The former PBA player was represented by his wife Eleonor and daughter.
The team was recognized with the De La Salle Alumni Association Sports Achievement Awards together with the men’s volleyball team which reigned as NCAA champion from 1977-80.
“May mga hindi nakapunta dahil wala na kaming contacts sa kanila. But may iba galing pa ng abroad just to join the team. Masaya talking and remembering about the team’s glory days,” said Villavicencio, now team manager of the NLEX Road Warriors.
Eng Beng spearheaded the Green Archers team in winning the NCAA championship of a season that was truly memorable especially beating archrivals Ateneo Blue Eagles to regain the crown, 90-80, at the Araneta Coliseum.
The La Salle standout played his final game wearing the green jersey by exploding for 37 points during the title game to give the school its second championship in four years.
Named as the season MVP, Eng Beng ended his senior year in remarkable fashion by averaging an all-time per game average of 32 points and registering the most points scored ever in an NCAA game with 55 points.
The championship proved to be the last of the five titles the Green Archers won in the country’s Grand Old League.
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