THE WATER BOY
As a kid who couldn’t get into scrimmages with the big boys when he was growing up in Cebu, Titing Manalili found a way to stay close to the game he loves.
“I would buy water [for those who were playing] and just watch their games to see what I could learn from them,” Manalili said.
Look where he is now.
His pinpoint passing wizardry has made more than its regular rounds on social media platforms. He is a vital cog for a Letran squad that’s in the hunt for the NCAA Season 1010 men’s basketball title. And, for someone who couldn’t get minutes in provincial courts, he finally got to showcase his skills in a venue that’s regarded as the birthplace of basketball’s popularity in the country.
“I can’t even imagine that this amount of people would see what I’ve been doing,” Manalili said on Tuesday, after leading the Knights to a 77-73 win over Perpetual Help in Game 1 of the Season 101 semifinals.
Manalili has officially gone from a scrawny water boy for Cebu teams to a supernova star at the Big Dome. And the bright lights didn’t seem to bother the 6-foot guard in his Areneta debut.
In fact, Manalili played like he belonged there, dropping 15 points, eight assists, six steals and five rebounds in 34 minutes to push Letran closer to its first Finals appearance since 2022.
The 21-year-old swingman backstopped Jimboy Estrada, who also scattered 15 points in the Letran win.
San Beda triumphs
Patrick Sleat scored 21 for the Altas while John Abis finished with 20 points and nine rebounds in a losing effort.
Despite those numbers, though, Manalili was the one who truly shone. In fact, someone from the other semifinal bracket took notice.
“The kid is good,” San Beda coach Yuri Escueta told the Inquirer after their 91-72 rout of the College of St. Benilde.
“Once you’re in that type of scenery where you watch players play even if you’re just on the sidelines, you’ll really learn,’ he added.
Escueta was laser-focused with the Red Lions en route to a Game 1 win in their semifinal half, but even he couldn’t turn away from Manalili’s meteoric rise.
“We know how tough those Bisayas are, they’re always tough, we have a lot of Bisayas in TNT, so I know how tough he is and when we played him before, I really saw how talented he was,” said Escueta, who is an assistant with the Tropang Giga in PBA.
Game 2 of both semifinal series takes place on Friday at Mall of Asia Arena.
