Happy Birthday, Richard Anthony Ticzon ( Sept 8 )
Aris Garcia
Happy Birthday, Richard Anthony Ticzon
1994 PBA Rookie Draft 4th overall pick
Ateneo Blue Eagles playmaker
2x PBA champion
2015 UAAP champion as assistant coach
7-season PBA veteran
3-PBA team player
1996 PBA Comeback Player of the Year
Source : Assorted Magazines (PBA Archives Collections)
RICHARD TICZON
Richard Ticzon, a 5-8 point guard, is one of two newcomers on the Sta. Lucia Realty line-up (the other being ex-national cager Segundo dela Cruz). He comes in to fill the void vacated by premier point guard Eugene Quilban who moved up to the pros early this year. There's a problem, though, as he isn't used to playing point. He is known as a shooter over at the Ateneo Blue Eagles camp and in fact, one of his idols is Allan Caidic of Presto. He even won the Pizza Hut three-point shootout in last year's UAAP meet. "But I'm willing to adjust to the new role assigned to me by coach Francis Rodriguez. Of course, I still lack the experience and I'm sometimes rattled during pressure situations. But I'll get over it," said Ritchie who was born on September 8, 1971. He is the eldest of two kids of businessman Jose Ticzon and Manila Times accountant Evelyn Mora. His younger brother Robert is also into basketball. Ritchie played two years for Ateneo high under coach Virgil Villavicencio and is now in his second season with the Eagles. Actually, prior to the start of the 1991 PBL season, Triple V tried to acquire his services. Villavicencio is a consultant of the Food Masters coached by Derick Pumaren, you know. "But I had already said yes to Sta. Lucia as early as last year," said Ticzon, a management and economics student. "They understood the situation." He credits Villavicencio and collegiate coach Vincent 'Chot' Reyes for really polishing his skills. Now he expects to learn more from Rodriguez. "I'm not yet used to his style because I've been with the team barely two months. We lost a lot of players to the PBA and that's why we're not having a good start. Maybe in the second round things will get better," said Ritchie. Adept at shooting three-pointers, he would like to improve his dribbling skills so as to penetrate the tightly clogged lanes in the PBL. Of course, he knows that with his height he really must shift to point guard if he intends to last long in the game.
