Kib Montalbo: The “Kib” wonder

In this upcoming 76th season of the UAAP, four rookies will be suiting up in a Green-and-White jersey: one of these is Kib Montalbo, arguably the most sought after rookie in the Green Archers’ line-up this year. A product of St. John’s Institute in Bacolod City, the 5-foot-11 guard is known for his outside shooting and excellent court vision, a lethal combo previously manifested in La Salle’s past point guards such as JVee Casio and TY Tang when they dominated the UAAP.

Although known as a pass-first type of player, Montalbo can shoot the lights out when given the opportunity and he gives opposing defenses an extremely hard time. The quick guard was known to score at will in high school, and he recorded a 45-point outburst and had several 30-point outings during his days in Bacolod.

Basketball was not Montalbo’s first sport though. He first fell in love with swimming and billiards before learning to love the game when he was eight-years-old, after he played in his school’s intramurals. According to Montalbo, his biggest motivation to do his best in basketball is his father, Roger Montalbo. The elder Montalbo was also a point guard back in his playing days, and also served as the assistant coach to his son’s high school team.

Montalbo was courted by many schools during his high school days, particularly La Salle and Ateneo, and both schools showed high interest in recruiting him, but he eventually chose La Salle due to the fact that many of his family members are alumni of DLSU.

The freshman turned heads when he was placed in the top eight of Jr. NBA Philippines, besting over 20,000 basketball players nationwide. He considers this the greatest achievement of his career thus far; it was also for this that he caught the attention of Dindo Pumaren, La Salle’s head coach back then.

The Bacolod native says that he does not let the sudden media attention get into his head. He always keeps in his mind that he needs to stay humble and work hard to get to the top and be the best that he can be. He and the team are not aiming for individual accolades, but are aiming to bring the UAAP championship back to Taft Avenue. He looks up to his veteran teammates and says they have been excellent role models, especially fellow guards Almond Vosotros and LA Revilla. The two veterans have been a big help in improving his game during his short stint with the team thus far, and help him keep his sights clear. “Expect us to play for the name in the front and not in the back,” reminds the humble Montalbo.