1998–99 Philippine Basketball League season
The 1998–99 season of the Philippine Basketball League (PBL).
| 1998–99 PBL season | |
|---|---|
| Duration | April 18, 1998 – January 21, 1999 |
| Number of teams | 7 |
| TV partner(s) | Silverstar Sports (PTV) |
| Conferences | |
| 1st Centennial Cup champions | Tanduay Centennial Rhum Masters |
| Runners-up | Batang Red Bull Energy Kings |
| 2nd Centennial Cup champions | Dr.J Rubbing Alcohol |
| Runners-up | Tanduay Gold Rhum Masters |
| Awards | |
| Season MVP | Eric Menk |
| Seasons | |
< 1997-98
1999-2000 > | |
TV coverage
PTV 4, in partnership with Silverstar Sports as the line producer, covered the PBL games.
1998 (1st) Centennial Cup
Participating teams (coach)
- Batang Red Bull (Nat Canson)
- Dr.J Rubbing Alcohol (Leo Isaac)
- Zest-O Juice Drink (Mollet Pineda)
- Welcoat Paints (Gabby Velasco)
- Tanduay Centennial Rhum (Alfrancis Chua)
- Chowking Oriental Fastfood (Arturo Cristobal)
- Wilkins Distilled Water (Arlene Rodriguez)
Finals series
July 6 |
| Tanduay Centennial Rhum 71, Batang Red Bull 65 | ||
| Tanduay wins series, 3-0 |
Makati Coliseum, Makati City |
Tanduay scored a 3–0 sweep over Red Bull in the 1st Yakult-PBL Centennial Cup finals. The Rhum Masters clinch the title with a 71-65 victory in Game three. [1]
1998-99 (2nd) Centennial Cup
Participating teams (coach)
- Batang Red Bull (Nat Canson)
- Dr.J Rubbing Alcohol (Leo Isaac)
- Welcoat Paints (Gabby Velasco)
- Tanduay Centennial Rhum (Alfrancis Chua)
- Chowking Oriental Fastfood (Leo Austria)
- Blu Detergent *New team
- Paralux Auto Paints *New team
Finals series
Tanduay Rhum Masters strung up 18 straight victories (18-0) in the 2nd Yakult-PBL Centennial Cup, before newcomer Blu Detergents halted their winning run. Tanduay wound up with a 19-1 win-loss record going into the finals.
Dr.J Ana Water Dispenser won their first-ever PBL crown with a 3-2 series win over Tanduay and denied the Rhum Masters on what could have been a grand exit for the multi-titled ballclub as the Lucio Tan franchise leaped to the pro ranks. [2]
All-Star game
A PBL All-Star game was held in December 1998, Tanduay's Eric Menk leads the PBL-UAAP selection while Asi Taulava of Blu Detergent beef up the PBL-NCAA Hapee selection. The North vs South All-Star game had Yakult-South being coach by Leo Austria while the North All-Stars was handled by Gabby Velasco.
Women's Philippine Basketball League (WPBL)
PBL Commissioner Yeng Guiao came up with the formation of the first-ever women's league in the PBL in mid-October to spice up the 2nd conference, among the teams which participated in the Women's Philippine Basketball League are Dr J/Ana Dispenser, Dreyers Ice Cream, Welcoat Paints, Ever Bilena, Tanduay, Chowking and Paralux/Ironcon. Notable WPBL cagebelles were former RP team members Mitchell Jimenez (Paralux), Ana Marie Tinasas (Dreyers), Joanna Franquelli (Ana Dispenser), Mary Ellen Caasi and Cherry Maralit (Welcoat), and four-time SEA games campaigner and silver medal winning-RP team in the Chiang Mai games, Julie Amos of Ever Bilena.
On December 28, 1998, Ever Bilena won the first Birch Tree-Women's PBL crown with a nail-biting 52-51 victory over Chowking at the Makati Coliseum. [3]
References
- "Tanduay bags Centennial Cup". Philippine Headline News Online.
- "A first for Dr.J".
- "Ever Bilena bags first WPBL crown". Philippine Headline News Online.