Remembering NCC Days - Jose Antonio Yturri

He's a guy who, two years ago, looked like he's stuck, with a rating of "least like- ly to succeed."
He was playing then in the 1982 Asian Youth championships here in Manila and except for his height, 
he was everything a basketball player is not supposed to be. He was slow, awkward, and could hardly jump, 
qualities that made him a crowd favorite whenever he was fielded, more so whenever he scored a basket.
But that was two years ago. At present, the same cager is there with the best of the country's basketball stars, 
in the PBA and so far he has been holding his own against the veterans. Jose Antonio Yturri y Torrijos, 
nick- named Tonichi, is the name and he is the starting center of Northern Consolidated, the guest amateur team
in the pro league, and presently is in the thick of the fight in the semifinals after topping the elims.
At 6'5, Tonichi is one of the tallest cagers in the NC line-up. But although he is his team's regular center, 
he only ranks second in rebounding to teammate Jeff Moore, the high-leaping power forward. Eliminations 
statistics showed Moore norming 15 caroms per game to Tonichi's 7.3 average.