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A Grand Six-Pack and Exit for Harbour Centre
By Jonas Terrado (February 11, 2009)

It was the end of an era for one of the greatest teams in the history of the Philippine Basketball League.

Harbour Centre's 88-73 win over Magnolia Purewater in the title-clinching Game 4 of the 2009 PBL PG Flex Linoleum Cup finals capped off a four-year run for the franchise that won its sixth-consecutive crown.

But it wasn't easy as they would have to erase a nine-point halftime deficit after struggling for most of the first half and with bruising big man Jerwin Gaco in foul trouble. Worse, the team didn't have key player Reed Juntilla because of some issues regarding his impending move to the pros.

In comes Mark Barroca, Nick Stephens and Benedict Fernandez as they caught fire in the last 20 minutes to seal the championship.

"Gigil na gigil ang mga bata sa first half kaya we fell behind by 11 points. But good thing, our defense held on in the third which started it all," said head coach Jorge Gallent, who mentored the team in all of its title runs.

Barroca, named as the Finals' Most Valuable Player, came through in the fourth quarter to finish with 15 points, including a huge triple with 1:25 remaining that put Harbour up by nine points, 82-73.

On the other hand, Stephens surprised everyone as he delivered with some key shots down the stretch. With Magnolia cutting a 13-point gap into one, 73-72, the 6-5 Fil-Am buried a trey with 4:08 left, a crucial shot that ended a long scoring drought for the Batang Pier. He was later adjudged as the Pivotal Player of the series.

As for Fernandez, he was perhaps the most consistent player (along with Rico Maierhofer, who registered 15 points) for Gallent's wards. He scored 11 in the third quarter to finish with a team high 18 points on 4-of-6 three-pointers as the Batang Pier ended the period on an 18-point turnaround for a 64-55 lead.

With a cast composed of 10 rookies, most of them from Far Eastern University, and veteran players from past championship teams, this version of the Batang Pier had no problem in the elimination round as they won their first seven games en route to the best record entering the semifinals. They then swept the Chris Tiu-led Hapee Complete Protectors to reach the finals.

"We just worked together as a team during the conference as it helped us win another title," said Gallent.

At the end, the team of owner Mikee Romero further established its place along with the likes of ESQ Marketing, the 1980's version of Magnolia Ice Cream, Hapee Toothpaste, Tanduay Rhum and Welcoat Paints.

"Bata pa lang ako, gusto ko lang matignan kung kaya namin maging Crispa Redmanizers. This is a tribute to them because they were the first one to win a six-peat in Philippine basketball," said Romero.

But Romero, also the PBL chairman, won't be leaving the league anytime soon as his team will now be known as R2 Builders, one of the businesses owned by his family.

"This is the last time the Batang Pier jersey will be worn," said Romero. "I'm very proud of all the players who wore the Batang Pier jersey, from LA Tenorio to Macmac Cardona to Gabby Espinas to the last team that we have."

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