On that fateful Wednesday last week at the Big Dome, a young man named Josh Urbiztondo took the spotlight in a sudden death match between the celebrated Alaska Aces and the Cinderellaesque Air 21 Express.

The Express found themselves down by 18 early and 13 by the halftime break. Urbiztondo checked back into the game late in the third frame and punctuated a huge 46-point Express outburst by coming up with a hale of threes to score 12 points in 90 seconds. That outburst turned the scoreboard around to see Air 21 up by 13 entering the 4th and proved to break the backs of the Aces as they got the boot. Josh ended up with 17 points in only 18 minutes on the floor.

In a game that featured the basketball household names of Danny Seigle, Dondon Hontiveros, LA Tenorio, Cyrus Baguio and Joe De Vance, it was this undrafted Fil-Am who all of a sudden stole the show.

If you’re not as addicted to the PBA as I am, you’re probably asking yourself, who the hell is this kid?

Back in 2007, I met a 6’1 kid through my cousin who was visiting from Foster City, CA., named Joshua Urbiztondo. He was a cocky 24 year-old at the time, fresh out of Fresno Pacific College, didn’t really know anybody in Manila and was looking to jump start a basketball career by attending open tryouts.

That was the year where a bunch of PBA superstars were to be on loan to the FIBA Asia-bound National Team, and a lot of opportunities were opening up for basketball aspirants, and the competition was cut-throat.

“I can do what Jimmy Alapag does for Talk N’ Text" were the words I remember from the bald-headed Fil-Am. I was dumbfounded. Although I haven’t seen this guy play, I had a pretty good grasp of what the (2003 Rookie of the Year) Mighty Mouse was capable of doing, and he was capable of great things.

Urbiztondo ended up running for Burger King in the now defunct PBL. Lawrence Chongson was the head coach but was replaced by Allan Gregorio after a short while.

Josh was eventually named to the All-PBL Defensive Team and was recruited to play for the SEA games-bound Philippine team. They also played a tournament in Brunei where former PBA team Sta. Lucia also participated. And just when he believed he was ready to turn pro, his documentary requirements turned out to be insufficient.

Urbiztondo went back to the Bay Area, almost giving up on his PBA dream. But after a year of working in the 9-5s while also hitting the gym on the side, Josh decided to give it one more shot.

In 2009, he made his way back to the Islands and found himself with Coach Allan Gregorio’s Pampanga Buddies of Liga Pilipinas. Then he moved back to the PBL to play alongside Chris Ross at Pharex where they made it all the way to the Finals. Josh was beaming with confidence as the 2009 PBA draft approached.

“As a competitor, you gotta be stubborn. You have to believe you’re the best in order to have the confidence to run with the best," says Urbiztondo.

D-day came and went without his number being called, another drawback for the now 26 year old. And just when he thought it would never happen, he got a call from Buddy Encarnado. The Sta. Lucia boss saw how tough his brand of play was at the Brunei tournament. Urbiztondo was invited into the Realtors’ camp where he worked even harder to make the roster. Coach Boyet Fernandez eventually gave the undrafted rookie a lot more responsibility when he moved Ryan Reyes to the 2-guard spot, letting Urbiztondo to run the show. There he once exploded for 24 points and registered averages of 7.8 points, 2.9 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1 steal in 22 minutes for his rookie year.

“The drawbacks really motivated me to work on my game even harder. I just have to focus on my strength which is on the defensive end… I take pride in what I can do on that side, and that just fuels what I can put up on offense."

Not only that, Josh understood that in order to prolong his career, he has to be marketable too. Never would you hear a story of Urbiztondo turning down an interview. This guy went the extra mile. He was there for photo shoots, charity work, special projects and whatever the PBA and the TV producers asked of him. He was aware that the people needed to know who he was, which is something some Fil-Ams don’t understand. You will also catch him trying to answer questions in Filipino to maybe endear himself even more and to show he’s truly a nice guy.

After moving over to the Express at the start of the 36th season, they opened the Commissioner’s Cup against SMB. That was two days before his 28th birthday, and Urbiztondo went berserk! Playing under new coach Bong Ramos, he was out to make a big impression. In 27 minutes of action, Josh went 7/8 from the 3-point line to put up a career-high 31 points that came with three rebs, a block and six dimes to beat the mighty San Miguel Beermen, 92-87.

Through his first year and a half in the pros, consistency has never been synonymous with his name, but his streakiness has definitely proven deadly, which is starting to become legendary.

Then the Express went through a face-lift. Urbiztondo seemed lost in the shuffle. He was not getting to play more than 20 minutes the rest of the tournament (up to this point).

Urbiztondo got his dream matchup with Jimmy Alapag as they opened their best of five semifinal series. Although the Mighty Mouse played, he was a bit under the weather. Jason Castro got the starting nod and embarrassed Urbiztondo early on with two takeaways for layups off the dribble. The Express found themselves down by as much as 21. In the 4th quarter, Josh again strung together three of his four long bombs to pump some life into Air 21… but fatigue (and TnT’s superb defense) got the better of them as they dropped the opener.

With all the odds stacked against them facing the superior Tropang Texters, and now down 0-2 in this race to three, he might have to come up with something magical once again in order for the Express to avoid TnT’s broom.

On Wednesday's do or die, their 7th of the tournament, Josh Urbiztondo is a guy every basketball fan should keep an eye on.

Magoo Marjon, GMA News TV