Lim Eng Beng

Lim Eng Beng
Personal information
Born (1951-11-10)November 10, 1951
Tondo, Manila
Died December 21, 2015(2015-12-21) (aged 64)
Manila, Philippines
Nationality Filipino
Listed height 5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Listed weight 175 lb (79 kg)
Career information
High school Chiang Kai Shek College
College De La Salle University
Playing career 1975–1986
Position Point guard / Shooting guard
Number 14
Career history
1975 Concepcion-Carrier
1976–1982 U/Tex Wranglers
1982–1983 San Miguel Beermen
1984 Crispa Redmanizers
1985 Shell Azodrin Bugbusters
1986 Manila Beer Brewmasters
Career highlights and awards

Lim Eng Beng (Chinese: 林嚶鳴; November 10, 1951 – December 21, 2015) was a Chinese Filipino basketball player who spent twelve seasons in the PBA from 1975-1986.

Early life

Lim was born and raised in Tondo, Manila from a very poor family. When he was 5 or 6 years old, his family stayed in a squatter’s area.

Personal life

He and his wife, Eleanor, have three children, Bryan (born 1981), Erin (born 1988) and Ervin (born 1989).

Collegiate career

Lim played for the De La Salle Green Archers from 1971 to 1974. In his rookie year, the Green Archers, led by himself and Mike Bilbao, won the 1971 NCAA men's basketball championship which was La Salle's first NCAA title in 15 years. Lim was a deadly scorer who single-handedly changed the complexion of a game. By the time he was a junior in 1973, he was getting various offers from teams in the MICAA. However, Lim opted to stay for one more year upon the proddings of the late Br. Gabriel Connon, the president of De La Salle College, promising that he would be getting something special in return. So for the final time, he suited up for the Green Archers. In his senior year, he averaged 32 points per outing in the 1974 season and set a single game record for the most points (men's basketball), which is 55 - a record which stands to this day. He was adjudged the Most Popular NCAA Player, was cast into the Mythical Five, received the Sportsmanship Award and ultimately won the Most Valuable Player (MVP) award. To cap his stellar collegiate career, he steered the Green Archers to the 1974 championship.

As a reward for winning the 1974 NCAA men's basketball championship, Br. Connon declared that his jersey number (#14) would be retired. In 1998, he was inducted into the DLSAA Sports Hall of Fame.[1]

He claimed to have never missed a free throw during his college career.[2]

Professional career

Right after college, Lim turned professional in the PBA, suiting up for Concepcion-Carrier (1975). He was best associated with the U/Tex Wranglers (1976-1982) and later played for the San Miguel Beermen (1982-1983), the Crispa Redmanizers (1984), Shell Azodrin (1985) and the Manila Beer Brewmasters (1986).

Career highlights

Playing with the Chinese Filipino Community

Lim started playing for Chiang Kai Shek College in 1968. With the help of his elder brother, he was recruited to its high school varsity squad where he led the team three consecutive championships. His team often travelled to Taipei, Taiwan each year to play for an invitational basketball tournament, where his shooting skills earned him great reputation among the Taiwanese youth. During his senior year after leading his school team to the championships for the third consecutive year, he was awarded the Most Outstanding Varsity Player by the school principal.

He joined China Bank in Manila, in 1970, to play in the inter-bank tournament and won the championship trophy.

In 1975, when he started playing in the newly created PBA (Philippine Basketball Association), the Federation of Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce quickly awarded him as one of the four Most Outstanding Youth in the Chinese Filipino community.

Continually playing in professional basketball from 1975 to 1986, he was among one of the few elite Chinese-Filipino athletes in the Philippines to be recognized as a superstar athlete and have inspired many youths to follow his footsteps.

In 1989, the Chiang Kai Shek Alumni Association awarded him a plaque of appreciation for the Most Outstanding Player representing the Philippines in International Tournaments. From 1990 to 1999, he played as playing coach for his Batch 31 basketball team.

From 1997 to 2001, he represented the PCFBL (Philippine Chinese Filipino Basketball League), as playing coach in the World Chinese Basketball Tournament and in the ASEAN Chinese Basketball League. Following are his and his team's accomplishments:

World Chinese Basketball Tournament:

Year 1997- 3rd placer held in Thailand Year 1998- 5th placer held in Beijing, China Year 1999- 2nd placer held in Malaysia Year 2000- Champions held in Sydney, Australia Year 2001- 3rd placer held in Thailand

ASEAN Chinese Basketball League:

Year 2000- Champions held in Thailand Year 2001- Champions held in Singapore Year 2002-2nd placer held in Indonesia

Retirement and later life

Lim was one of the Greatest Players in PBA History and was enshrined into the PBA Hall of Fame on November 17, 2013.[3]

In January 2013, Lim was diagnosed with Stage 3 liver cancer.[4] On top of this, he was already suffering liver cirrhosis, and given three years to live.[5]

Lim died on December 21, 2015 after a three-year battle against liver cancer.[6]

References

  1. ↑ Buenviaje, Min. "LIM ENG BENG: THE NUMBERS CAN’T DO ALL THE TALKING". www.thelasallian.com. The Lasallian. Retrieved 26 December 2014.
  2. ↑ Evangelista, Patricia. "GLORY DAYS". www.rappler.com. Rappler. Retrieved 26 December 2014.
  3. ↑ Ramos, Gerry. "Even in Hall of Fame, high school pals Magsanoc and Paras still inseparable". www.spin.ph. SPIN.ph. Retrieved 26 December 2014.
  4. ↑ "Basketball legend Lim Eng Beng battling liver cancer". www.interaksyon.com. InterAksyon. Retrieved 26 December 2014.
  5. ↑ Henson, Joaquin. "Cancer won’t dampen Beng’s spirit". www.philstar.com. Philippine Star. Retrieved 26 December 2014.
  6. ↑ Ganglani, Naveen (December 21, 2015). "Former La Salle and PBA great Lim Eng Beng dies". Rappler. Manila. Retrieved December 25, 2015.
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