The Final Score: For Luigi Trillo, having 'The Beast' is no longer a dream

Alaska Head Coach Luigi Trillo, even if it was well past midnight, was still up. In less than 24 hours, Trillo’s Aces would face Petron. In less than 24 hours, Trillo’s rookie, Calvin Abueva, would finally play in the PBA. Trillo just finished studying two Petron games on his DVD player. He was ready to call it a day. Or was he?   Trillo was motionless in bed. Yet his mind raced with concerns.   He thought about how he drafted Abueva instead of Cliff Hodge. He wondered, “Was I right?”   He thought about criticism over Abueva’s size and decision-making. He wondered, “Were they correct?”   He thought about expectations surrounding Abueva’s first PBA game. He wondered, “Will he crumble?”   He thought about Calvin’s chances against Arwind Santos and Jay Washington. He wondered, “Would they eat Abueva alive?”   It was Friday, 2:00am. He turned off his bedside lamp, closed his eyes and hoped for the best.   In Abueva’s two practices with Alaska, Trillo and his staff watched how the rookie responded. They initially made Calvin play the small-forward spot. The coaches feared that the 3-spot presented too many options on offense. In turn, that could provide too many complications for Calvin. So they simplified. Trillo, who saw Abueva perform well against teammate Gabby Espinas in practice, decided to let his rookie play power-forward against Petron.   With 2:58 left in the first quarter, Calvin entered his first PBA game. Calvin wore his customary headband. But no one was sure if he brought his customary attitude. Not even Trillo. 39 seconds after, Abueva grabbed his first rebound. Over Arwind Santos. Moments later, Abueva scored his first field goal; a cautious turn-around jumper. Over Arwind Santos. Again.   Trillo looked at Abueva and assessed his rookie’s demeanor. Abueva had the look of a man who was determined to contribute 12 points and 16 rebounds in less than 30 minutes. The coach’s realization: Good god. We got the energizer bunny from hell.   “Calvin is loud. He’s noisy. He affects the game. He can intimidate like he’s going to have you for breakfast, lunch and dinner. We didn’t have a guy like that before,” Trillo admitted. “We have it now.”   I watched the game beside former Alaska player Frankie Lim. I asked Frankie a hypothetical query, “Would Tim Cone pick Abueva for Alaska?”   Frankie, who played for Cone, replied, “Tim would’ve drafted Cliff Hodge.”   I agreed.   Luigi Trillo, after all, is not Tim Cone. Luigi aims to break free from the shadow of his accomplished predecessor. He wants to prove that you don’t need to be a Cone to make Alaska win. He might have found the unlikeliest weapon to pull it off. The young coach and his tempestuous rookie completely believe they can surprise the league the way they surprised Petron last Friday night. Even if you don’t.   “I realized we won,” Trillo recalled. “I was really happy. Happy that we have Calvin.”   It was Saturday, 7:15am. The coach woke up, opened his eyes and saw the future.