CALVIN Abueva capped his road to redemption on Wednesday when he was named Davco-PBA Philippine Cup Best Player of the Conference.
The 33-year-old Magnolia forward bested TnT rookie Mikey Williams and teammate Ian Sangalang in claiming his second BPC plum in five years or since the 2016 Commissioner's Cup while still playing for Alaska.
Abueva, playing in just his second conference since being reinstated from a year-long suspension, tallied a total of 934 summary value points out of the combined statistics and votes from media, players, and the PBA Commissioner's Office.
The former NCAA MVP, acquired by Magnolia in an off-season trade with Phoenix, topped the statistics with 415 points, while receiving 440 from media votes, 54 from players, and 25 from the PBA.
Commissioner Willie Marcial personally awarded the BPC plaque to Abueva, who was given a warm hug by his Magnolia teammates and members of the coaching staff when his name was announced.
Sponsored content: Williams, the sensational rookie of TnT, finished a close second to Abueva with 843 points, his chance for the individual award affected when he fell to no. 4 in the statistical race after being a consistent no. 2 to Abueva during the eliminations.
The Fil-Am guard, who turned 30 on Wednesday, finished fourth in statistics with 389, and received 245 points from media votes, 59 from players, and 150 from the PBA office.
Sangalang placed third with 591 points as he made a serious case for the conference's highest individual honor for the very first time.
The 29-year-old Sangalang was third to Abueva in statistics with 401 points, 82 from media votes, and 33 and 75 from the players and PBA, respectively.
Robert Bolick of NorthPort and June Mar Fajardo of San Miguel rounded up the Top 5 in the BPC race.
Sponsored content: Bolick, who finished no, 2 in statistics with 409 points, accumulated a total of 447 points to finish at fourth, while Fajardo, the six-time MVP, had 403 points for fifth place. (RG)
