| 1998 Pop Cola 800s season | |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Norman Black |
| Owner(s) | RFM Corporation |
| All-Filipino Cup results | |
| Record | 11–11 (50%) |
| Place | 3rd |
| Playoff finish | Semifinals |
| Commissioner's Cup results | |
| Record | 7–8 (46.7%) |
| Place | 3rd |
| Playoff finish | Semifinals |
| Governors' Cup results | |
| Record | 8–7 (53.3%) |
| Place | 5th |
| Playoff finish | Eliminated |
| Pop Cola 800s seasons | |
The 1998 Pop Cola 800s season was the ninth season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
| Round | Pick | Player | Nationality | College |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Ali Peek |  United States | Saint Mary's |
| 1 | 4 | Brixter Encarnacion |  Philippines | SSC-Recoletos |
| 2 | 9 | Jasper Ocampo | Philippines | SSC-Recoletos |
| 3 | Terrence Bito | United States | Cal State Northridge | |
| 4 | Jesse Cabanayan | Philippines | Baguio |
After two years and six conferences of non-semifinal appearances, Pop Cola finally made it to the semifinal round in coach Norman Black's first full season with the RFM ballclub. [1] The 800s placed third in the All-Filipino Cup by winning their one-game battle with Sta.Lucia for third place.
NBA journeyman Sean Higgins was Pop Cola's import in the Commissioner's Cup, Higgins lasted eight games and was replaced by Marcus Liberty, who led the 800s to three straight wins and an outright semifinals berth. After the eliminations, Liberty went back to the States to settle a family problem. Sherell Ford, a legitimate NBA first round pick, plane in for the best-of-five semifinal series against the San Miguel Beermen and scored 42 points in Pop Cola's 97–106 loss in Game one. The Beermen easily won in Game two and Pop Cola coach Norman Black decided for the team to replaced Ford. Assistant coach Alfrancis Chua recommended Marcus Timmons, who played for him at Tanduay in the PBL, Timmons' efforts were not enough to hold back the Beermen in the 800s' 79–92 loss in Game three. After Timmons left for Australia, coach Norman Black was forced to play in their game against Formula Shell for third place, Black makes history by becoming the oldest import to play in the league at age 41, leading his team to an 84–80 win over Shell.
Pop Cola had a pair of Victor Page and Paul Graham as their import for the Centennial Cup. After three games, Page was replaced by the comebacking Tony Harris, who led the 800s to four wins in eight games he played before a fracture in his right hand cut short his stint and was replaced by David Booth in their second outing in the Governor's Cup. Pop Cola lost their last game to Purefoods, 95–104 in overtime and the 800s missed out a semifinals berth, finishing one game behind the four semifinalist with eight wins and seven losses.
February 10: Pop Cola pick up their first win of the season after two losses to San Miguel and Alaska by winning over Formula Shell, 88–74. [2]
March 21: Pop Cola smothered a weary Sta.Lucia five, 78–70, for its second straight win in the All-Filipino Cup semifinals. The 800s improved their won-loss record to 7–6. [3]
| 1998 Pop Cola 800 roster | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Tournament | Name | Number | Position | University/College | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commissioner's Cup | Sean Higgins | 3 | Forward | University of Michigan | May 22 to June 16 |
| Marcus Liberty | 32 | Forward | University of Illinois | June 21 to July 3 | |
| Sherell Ford | Forward | UIC | July 19-21 | ||
| Marcus Timmons | Forward | Southern Illinois | July 24 (one game) | ||
| Norman Black | 24 | Center-Forward | Saint Joseph's | August 2 (one game) | |
| Governors' Cup | Victor Page | 12 | Guard | Georgetown | August 28 to September 5 |
| Paul Graham | 8 | Guard | Ohio | August 28 to November 3 | |
| Tony Harris | 22 | Guard-Forward | UNO | September 8 to October 9 | |
| David Booth | Forward | DePaul | October 16 to November 3 |
The Sta. Lucia Realtors were a professional basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) from 1993 to 2010. Prior to joining the PBA, it played in the Philippine Basketball League (PBL) from 1987 to 1992.
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.
Norman Augustus Black is a Consultant to the San Beda University Red Lions Basketball team playing in the NCAA Philippines. He is a former professional basketball player who played in the CBA, NBA, and PBA. He's the former head coach for the Meralco Bolts.
The 1992 PBA season was the 18th season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1994 PBA season was the 20th season of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1995 Sta. Lucia Realtors season was the 3rd 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 1997 Alaska Milkmen season was the 12th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1996 Purefoods Tender Juicy Hotdogs season was the 9th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). The team was known as Purefoods Corned Beef Cowboys starting the Governor's Cup.
The 1996 Ginebra San Miguel season was the 18th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1996 San Miguel Beermen season was the 22nd season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1996 Sta. Lucia Realtors season was the fourth 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 2000 Sta. Lucia Realtors season was the eighth season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
The 1995 Pepsi Mega Bottlers season was the 6th 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 return to their former name Purefoods Tender Juicy Hotdogs starting the Commissioners Cup.
The 1999 Pop Cola 800s season was the 10th season of the franchise in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA).
