FIERCE and victorious in the OKbet-MPBL (Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League) 4th Season presented by Xtreme on Tuesday at the Bren Z. Guiao Convention Center in San Fernando, Pampanga, Bacolod got back on track with a 94-68 thrashing of the Mindoro Tams.  

Following three consecutive close losses, the Bacolodnons took it out on the Tamaraws. The result was their sixth victory compared to four losses in the single round-robin phase between 22 teams.

Mark Yee – milestone

Local John Lemuel Pastias led Bacolod with 14 points, and veteran Mark Yee was second with 12 points and 13 rebounds to become the league’s first 1,000-rebounder. 

For Bacolod coach Alex Angeles, who rotated his 15 players, only one of whom failed to score, Alwyn Alday contributed 10 points and 5 rebounds. 

Mindoro dropped to 1-11 after suffering its sixth straight loss and was officially eliminated from contention for quarterfinal spots.

For the Tamaraws, Khen Osicos had 17 points and 9 rebounds. Drake Santos contributed 16 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists, and Oliver Santos contributed 13 points and 4 boards. 

Bacolod outscored Mindoro 58-24 in the paint after dominating the boards, 61-41, with Yee showing his might underneath.

The Bacolodnons also played more cohesively, with 26 assists compared to the Tamaraws’ 12, who left the game along with the Makati Kingpins, who were at 1-11.

Mark Yee was born January 4, 1982. A professional basketball player from the Philippines who plays for the Filbasket and the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League’s Bacolod Bingo Plus. He performs as a small forward. Listed at 6 ft 3 inches in height, 170 lbs in weight.

Yee was a college student athlete from San Sebastian College in Cavite. 2008 PBA undrafted, playing professional basketball since 2008 up to present.

His career background started with Burger King Whoppers from 2008-2009. He then played for Talk ‘n Text Tropang texters 2009-2011, Meralco Bolts 2011-2012, GlobalPort batang Pier 2012-2014. Between 2015-2018 Yee played for various teams including Kia Carnival, Mahindra Enforcer, Mahindra Floodbuster, Kia Picanto, Columbian Dyip. In 2018 however, he then transferred once more to play for the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) specifically and first for Davao Occidental Tigers from 2018-2021. In 2021 he played for the Bicol Volcanoes until he played for the prestigious All-Star Bacolod Ballers and Bacolod Bingo plus.

In hindsight we recall Mark Yee joining Montreal’s Fiba 3×3 team’s Manila Chooks in 2021.

On September 4 and 5, Mark Yee had joined the Manila Chooks TM team as it competed in the Montreal Masters of the 2021 Fiba 3×3 World Tour. 

With Chico Lanete serving as a backup, the 39-year-old Yee teams up with veterans Mac Tallo, Zach Huang, and Dennis Santos. 

The World No. 2 Riga of Latvia, No. 4 Ub of Serbia, No. 7 Amsterdam of the Netherlands, No. 8 Antwerp of Belgium, and No. 10 Edmonton of Canada are among the 12 teams placed ahead of Manila.

Princeton from the United States, Lausanne from Switzerland, Raudondvaris from Lithuania, Old Montreal from Canada, Omaha from the United States, and one more team that will qualify through a Quest event complete the field. 

Yee and Company had departed for Montreal having cleared their previous and recent pending RT-PCR results. 

Manila has already competed once this season, placing 13th at the Doha Masters last March.

Apart from this recent milestone and achievement, a lot of potential awaits Yee, his current team, and their overall total performance in the MPBL. Currently, Yee is rather one of the most prized pigs in the Philippine basketball scene.