Roster
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| 1997 Alaska Milkmen season | |
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| Head coach | Tim Cone |
| General Manager | Joaqui Trillo |
| Owner(s) | Wilfred Steven Uytengsu |
| All-Filipino Cup results | |
| Record | 6–8 (42.9%) |
| Place | 6th |
| Playoff finish | Eliminated |
| Commissioner's Cup results | |
| Record | 13–11 (54.2%) |
| Place | 2nd |
| Playoff finish | Finals (lost to Gordon's Gin) |
| Governors Cup results | |
| Record | 16–6 (72.7%) |
| Place | 1st |
| Playoff finish | Champions (def. Purefoods) |
| Alaska Milkmen seasons | |
The 1997 Alaska Milkmen season was the 12th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
February 16: The Grandslam champions opened their quest for another title-run by defeating a brand-new Mobiline Cellulars, 100–91, which had a new coach in Norman Black and 6-9 Fil-American rookie Andrew John Seigle, the number 1 overall pick, in the lone game of the PBA 23rd season opening. [1]
April 15: In their last game in the eliminations of the All-Filipino Cup, the Milkmen beat Pop Cola, 93–85, for their 6th win against eight losses. Alaska missed a chance to forge a playoff with Mobiline, which pick up the fifth semifinals berth with a victory over league-leading Gordon's Gin in the second game, thus ending their streak of eight consecutive finals appearance.
Former Añejo import Sylvester Gray, who last played in the PBA in 1990, came back to play for Alaska in the Commissioners Cup. The Milkmen were the last team to enter the semifinals with five wins and five losses. Gray decided to play elsewhere starting the semifinal round and was replaced by another returning import Kevin Holland, who played for Pepsi Mega three years ago. Alaska won six of their eight matches in the semifinals and overcame San Miguel's plus 12 quotient in an 87–71 victory over the Beermen on August 17 to automatically clinch the first finals berth with their 11th win in 18 outings, leaving sister teams Gordon's Gin and San Miguel to dispute the second finals seat. [2] The Boars prevailed over the Beermen in two overtimes and went on to beat the Alaska Milkmen in the championship series, four games to two.
Sean Chambers is on his ninth year with Alaska as they defend the only crown left from last season. On October 27, pre-season acquisitions Dwight Lago and Boyet Fernandez were traded to Pop Cola for Kenneth Duremdes and Edgar Tanuan. [3] Duremdes' entry gave the Milkmen an additional firepower which they missed at the start of the season following Jeffrey Cariaso's departure to Mobiline. The Milkmen makes it to the Governors Cup semifinals outright with nine wins and five losses, they scored a 3–0 sweep over Sta.Lucia Realtors in the best-of-five semifinal series.
Alaska retains the Governors Cup title for the fourth straight time by winning against All-Filipino Cup champion Purefoods Carne Norte Beefies, four games to one. The finals victory gave the Milkmen their seventh league crown as they overtake the defunct Presto ballclub as the fourth winningest franchise.
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| Off-season | To Sta. Lucia Realtors Gilbert Reyes | To Alaska Milkmen Boyet Fernandez |
| Off-season | To Mobiline Phone Pals Jeffrey Cariaso | To Alaska Milkmen Dwight Lago |
| Off-season | To Purefoods Cris Bolado | To Alaska Milkmen Rodney Santos Bryant Punsalan |
| October 27 | To Pop Cola Boyet Fernandez Dwight Lago | To Alaska Milkmen Kenneth Duremdes Jack Tanuan |
| Tournament | Name | Number | Position | University/College | Duration |
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| Commissioner's Cup | Sylvester Gray | 23 | Center-Forward | Memphis State | June 14 to July 20 |
| Kevin Holland | 5 | Forward-Center | DePaul University | July 29 to September 7 | |
| Governors' Cup | Sean Chambers | 20 | Forward | Cal Poly San Luis Obispo | September 21 to December 14 |
The Alaska Aces were a professional basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association since 1986 under the ownership of Alaska Milk Corporation (AMC) and the owner of 14 PBA championships, tied with the Magnolia Hotshots for the third-most titles overall. They were one of the most popular teams in the league and the Philippines.
The Pop Cola Panthers were a professional basketball team that played in the Philippine Basketball Association from 1990-2001. The franchise was owned by RFM Corporation. In 2001, when RFM Corporation sold its entire stake in Cosmos Bottling Corporation to Coca-Cola Bottlers Philippines, Inc. (CCBPI), the PBA franchise was included in the transaction. Upon ownership by CCBPI, the PBA franchise renamed the Coca-Cola Tigers beginning the 2002 PBA season and was considered as an expansion team.
Kenneth Celera Duremdes is a Filipino retired professional basketball player in the Philippine Basketball Association and the current commissioner of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL). Nicknamed as "Captain Marbel", Duremdes is also a former PBA Most Valuable Player in 1998, and a former member of the Philippine national basketball team.
In the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), the Grand Slam is the achievement of winning all three conference championships (tournaments) in a single season. As of 2020, this has been accomplished five times by four teams and four coaches since the league's inception in 1975.
The 1994 PBA season was the 20th season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1997 PBA season was the 23rd season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1998 PBA season was the 24th season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1997 Gordon's Gin Boars season was the 19th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1995 Alaska Milkmen season was the 10th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1997 Pop Cola Bottlers season was the eighth season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1997 Formula Shell Super Unleaded season was the 13th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1996 Ginebra San Miguel season was the 18th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1995 San Miguel Beermen season was the 21st season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1999 San Miguel Beermen season was the 25th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1998 San Miguel Beermen season was the 24th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1998 Alaska Milkmen season was the 13th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1998 Sta. Lucia Realtors season was the sixth season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1998 Purefoods Carne Norte Beefies season was the 11th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). The team was named Purefoods Carne Norte Beefies in the All-Filipino Cup.
The 1999 Alaska Milkmen season was the 14th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
Edgardo "Jack" Tanuan was a Filipino professional basketball player in the Philippine Basketball Association.
