NMASA nod vindication for Jericho

Youth cager Jericho Cruz was snubbed for the Oceania All-Star Team last year, but not by the Northern Marianas Amateur Sports Association, which named him the 2008 Male Student Athlete of the Year last week.

“It feels great to be recognized for your efforts, for the good things you have done for your teammates and your team,” Cruz said.

Cruz was chosen as top male student athlete for 2008 after suiting up for the CNMI Junior Nationals, who played in the 2008 Oceania Youth Tournament in Guam, and for his outstanding performance in various leagues on Saipan.

In the Oceania caging, Cruz led the tournament in scoring in the round-robin play, as he averaged 23 points per game. He also posted impressive numbers in assists and rebounds departments.

But it seemed these figures were not enough to convince judges to include Cruz in the lineup for the Oceania All-Star Team, which will be playing in a tournament in Australia this year.

“I was really disappointed not to make the team. I felt I played better than those players from Palau and Papua New Guinea who were chosen for the All-Stars,” said Cruz, who also led the Junior Nationals to a title win in the Rotary caging last year.

Cruz and the CNMI Junior Nationals defeated Palau and Papua New Guinea en route to a sixth place finish in the eight-team Oceania tournament.

“This award was sort of a vindication for me, that I deserved a spot on the All-Star team,” Cruz said.

“It would have been great had I was selected for the All-Stars, as it will would have given me more opportunity to play against top youth players in Australia. But I have to move on now and forget that disappointment, and continue playing hard,” added Cruz, who will be playing for the CNMI Nationals in the 2009 Oceania Basketball Tournament in June here.

Besides playing for the Nationals, Cruz is also hoping to suit up for a college team in the Philippines. He is on his last year at Marianas High School and is planning to try out for various colleges in Manila.

Cruz also dreams of making it to a pro league in the Philippines, where he was born.

“It is every basketball player’s dream to make it to the pro league,” said Cruz, who thanked coaches Jose Tumaquip, Rufino Aguon, and Elias Rangamar for honing his basketball skills.