IN Shane Menina's extended collegiate career, never has he played at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
That changed on Saturday as Arellano, coming in as a late replacement for defending champion Letran, served as Emilio Aguinaldo College's date in the NCAA Season 98 opener on Saturday.
Shane Menina delivers in Big Dome debut
"Masaya ako kasi first time ko maglaro sa Araneta, so ginrab ko yung opportunity," said Menina, seizing his moment to kick off his collegiate swansong on a high note with the Chiefs taking the 63-58 conquest over the Generals.
The Cebuano guard stepped up to the plate when Arellano needed him the most, canning the game-sealing free throws with 11.0 seconds left to cap off his exceptional performance of 15 points, five rebounds, an assist, and a steal.
And it's really the kind of performance that coach Cholo Martin has come to expect from the 25-year-old court general.
"My rookie veteran," he said of Menina. "Alam naman natin yung laro niya eh, so it's a matter of timing and yung adjustment niya sa team niya kasi nga bago lang siya sa team namin."
"Ok naman, good result naman. Give and take naman sila ng teammates niya so walang problema. Alam nila yung magagawa ni Shane, kung ano mabibigay sa team, so we let him play."
It's with this confidence that Menina draws a lot of strength from, all the more as he seeks to make a strong impression before testing his mettle in the professional stage.
"Binibigyan ako ng tiwala ni coach at binibigyan niya ako ng oras. So tiwala din kami sa kanya kung ano yung sinasabi niya, kaya nilalaro lang namin yung best namin," he said.
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