CALVIN Abueva has won the Davco-Best Player of the Conference (BPC) award in the 2021 PBA Philippine Cup.
Abueva beat Mikey Williams of TNT, teammate Ian Sangalang, Robert Bolick of NorthPort, and June Mar Fajardo of San Miguel to win the conference's highest individual honor in short rites held before Game 4 of the Philippine Cup Finals.
Abueva has been a cut above the rest based on the statistical points race in only his first conference with Magnolia, winning the award for the first time since the 2016 Commissioner’s Cup when he was still with Alaska.
Abueva helped Magnolia to an 8-3 (win-loss) finish in the elimination round, while also leading the Hotshots to playoff wins against Rain or Shine and Meralco to gain a return trip to the finals.
The Magnolia star earned 934 points in the BPC tally – 415 points from statistics, 440 from media votes, 54 from players’ votes, and 25 from the PBA - and narrowly beat the rookie Williams in the final tally.
Williams placed second in the BPC tally with 843 – 389 from statistics, 245 from media votes, 59 from players’ votes, and the highest of 150 from the PBA Commissioner's Office.
Sangalang finished a far third with 591 – 401 from statistics, 82 from media, 33 from players, and 75 from the PBA.
During the elimination round, Abueva had the 10th best scoring average with 16.1, while grabbing 7.3 rebounds, the fourth best in the tournament. He also averaged 3.1 assists.
Along with playoff games, Abueva has so far eight double-doubles including a 20-point, 19-rebound night against Rain or Shine last September 30.
Even with the BPC award, Abueva had previously said that his main target is the championship, having not won a league title since the 2013 Commissioner’s Cup. 'The Beast' added that he considers the individual award as a bonus.