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There was no instruction from Burger King team officials to hurt Smart Gilas players during the controversial game marred by Wynne Arboleda’s attack on fan Alain Katigac. So claimed Arboleda, who was suspended by the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) for the rest of the season for his assault on Katigbac, during Wednesday’s hearing at the House of Representatives. His claim was backed by TV courtside reporter Patricia Bermudez-Hizon, who was witness to Burger King's pre-game huddle against Gilas.
Arboleda
The hearing was conducted by the committee on Games and Amusement headed by Manila Rep. Amado Bagatsing with the aim of modifying the 1976 legislation regulating the conduct of players, officials, referees and fans and possibly preventing a repeat of the Arboleda-Katigbac incident. During the hearing, Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) executive director Noli Eala and Smart Gilas coach Rajko Toroman claimed Burger King played “dirty" against the young Smart-Gilas team during their outing which resulted in six flagrant fouls in 18 minutes. A source present in the hearing said Eala and Toroman claimed that "somebody in authority ordered Burger King to play a physical game and use the flagrant fouls against the national team aspirants." But Arboleda, a two-time defensive player of the year awardee who’s known for his tough defense, refuted this. “There was no order from the coach to hurt Smart-Gilas. We played physical pero hindi dirty." "Parte ‘yun ng intimidating factor namin. That’s our best chance of winning, so we did play physical," the source quoted Arboleda as saying.
There was no order from the coach to hurt Smart-Gilas. We played physical pero hindi dirty. Parte ‘yun ng intimidating factor namin. That’s our best chance of winning, so we did play physical.
– Wynne Arboleda
Bermudez-Hizon, who was inside the Burger King locker room to gather information on the team’s game plan, lent credibility to Arboleda’s claim and likewise denied there were orders from coach Yeng Guiao to hurt Smart-Gilas players. “I’m glad that Rep. Roberto Puno (another congressman present during the hearing) asked me about what transpired in the locker room. There were no directives on Burger King players to hurt Smart-Gilas," Bermudez-Hizon later said on her Twitter account. Also present in the hearing were Katigbac and his lawyer, PBA chairman Lito Alvarez, PBA legal counsel Melvin Mendoza, Atty. Bert Mongan of the Games and Amusement Board (GAB), Sienna Olaso of the Araneta Coliseum and veteran slotman Marlou Aquino, who was once involved in a similar incident against a heckling fan. - GMANews.TV
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There was no order from the coach to hurt Smart-Gilas. We played physical pero hindi dirty. Parte ‘yun ng intimidating factor namin. That’s our best chance of winning, so we did play physical. 
