Mike Malonzo received the flowers he so deserved after providing the surprise spark in Rain or Shine’s upset of the twice-to-beat NLEX on Saturday night to advance to the PBA Season 49 Philippine Cup semifinals.
Teammate Santi Santillan took the time to give praise — or what today’s youth refer to as ‘shout-out’ — to the rookie winger. This, despite Santillan being the one to earn Player of the Game honors after firing 24 points and nine rebounds off the bench.
“Shout out kay Mike, ‘no. Mike Malonzo,” he said during the postgame presser of their 103-92 victory at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium. “Kasi siya ‘yung bumuhay sa amin [para mapunta sa] position na ‘to. so big shout-out sa kanya.”
Like him, Malonzo was also part of the second unit, and he sure made the most out of his time on the floor. He eventually finished with 10 points alongside five rebounds and two assists in a turnover-less showing in 18 minutes.
Malonzo made six of his points in the fourth alone, which he made to help create the telling 14-1 run toward a 96-82 lead to put the game away with 3:54 left.
It was a timely performance for a team that wanted to reach the semis for the fourth time in a row — and eventually did. While others were caught off-guard, though, no one from Rain or Shine felt the same.
Santillan himself is a witness to the kind of work ethic the National University product possesses, particularly with how he treats practices.
(C) PBA Images
“Sa practice nakikita namin siya. Nag-e-extra work siya lagi. Siya ‘yung maaga lagi eh,” he said. “Andun siya, nagshu-shooting na agad. Kami naman, ginaganahan mag-extra work. Kaya talagang todo-bigay kami sa extra work.”
That’s one of the reasons, too, why Coach Yeng Guiao and his staff needed no discussion over the length of the deal they would give Malonzo, whom the franchise drafted at 16th overall during the last PBA Draft.
“Nung nakita namin si Mike… I don’t know if people noticed, but we signed him up for three years,” said the champion bench tactician. “We did not sign him up for one year because nakita na namin agad na may potensyal ‘to.
“Hindi na namin pinag-usapan kung isang taon ba ‘yan, dalawang taon ba ‘yan, sabi namin tatlong taon agad ‘yan sa atin,” he added.
Their investment has been paying off nicely, as the former MPBL player with San Juan helped them advance to the last four.
“Nakita na namin eh,” Guiao said, proudly. “Masipag, matapang, offense defense, malakas ang katawan. May potensyal naman talaga ‘yung bata.”
#WATCH: Coach Yeng Guiao and Santi Santillan react to their #PBA2025 quarterfinals upset over NLEX and talk about another semis showdown vs TNT 🏀
🎥 @justinebacnis /Tiebreaker Times pic.twitter.com/Rmur4Y3kud
— Tiebreaker Times (@tiebreakertimes) June 22, 2025
