BACOLOD – Raymond Almazan captured the inaugural Big Men Three-Point Shootout championship in the PBA All-Star Bacolod 2024, Saturday at the University of St. La Salle Coliseum here.
The Meralco veteran shot second after Blackwater rookie Christian David in the Final and went on to set a bar too high for Dave Marcelo and Isaac Go, shooting 19 points on the way to taking home the P30,000 top prize as well.
David actually set the tone in the title round by producing 16, just four points short of tying his output in the opening round to advance.
But his status as a favorite quickly went out the window when Almazan carried over his fine form from the opening round, which saw him drop 17 points.
(C) PBA Images
Marcelo and Go could not surpass what the 34-year-old did, finishing with 16 and 13 points, respectively as the two apparently got spent after impressing in the first round. Go nailed 20 while Marcelo had 17 to his name.
It was, without a doubt, a successful first try for the PBA in holding a three-point tilt among big men, which was their replacement for the Slam Dunk Contest. The league scrapped the latter due to the participants’ injuries.
Also part of the shootout were Ralph Cu, Keith Zaldivar, Jason Perkins, June Mar Fajardo, Brandon Rosser, Santi Santillan, James Laput, and JM Calma.
Calma tried to win two skills challenges in a row but the newly-minted Obstacle Challenge title holder fell just short of at least reaching the finale with 16.
