By Jay Leon Guerrero

The Guam Invitational Basketball Tournament (GIBT) is now over and the local fans got a glimpse of Guam National Team phenom ‘Big’ Ben Borja. At just 18 years old, the 6’7” forward at times played like a veteran against high level competition from the Philippines.

The undisputed Pacific Games Gold Medallists now have a new member in ‘Big’ Ben to continue to be a force in the region.

“My experience with the Guam National Team was great. It was awesome to play with guys with who have high IQ’s for the game. Just watching and learning from them made me look forward to the future of Guam basketball,” said Borja.

Borja joined the team last month in Las Vegas to take part in the Impact Camp and then came to Guam to play in the tournament. He is the youngest member of the team and had a breakout game in the semi-finals in the GIBT against the UOG Tritons recording a double-double leading the team with 25 points and 12 rebounds.

Borja attended Okkodo High School until his sophomore year before leaving to attend Beaverton, Oregon, to stay with his half-brother Kea Colburn. While in Oregon, Borja attended Southridge High School and played for the Skyhawks against best schools (6A classification) in the state.

As a sophomore on Guam, Borja helped the Okkodo Bulldogs to the IIAAG championship game before coming up short to the FD Friars in 2014. With a 6’9″ wingspan, Borja protected the paint and had multiple games with 10-plus blocks in 2014. He was selected to the first team all-island squad. That was the last ‘Big’ Ben played at the Calvo Field House before returning last month to join the National Team.

What’s next?

Borja will leave Guam this week and will go to college in California.

“Now that I’m done with high school I look to go to college down in San Francisco, I will be attending San Francisco City College. I’m excited to experience the new lifestyle of living in the city and the different talents,” said Borja.

Now that he is in the national pool, he will join other teammates currently playing basketball for their respective institutions. Borja will join Kyle Husslein, Michael Sakazaki, Jonathan Galloway and Darren Hechanova as players on Guam National team members playing basketball for their school. Guam Head Coach EJ Calvo takes much pride in having an abundance of young talent.

“He has a vision for Guam basketball. He gives his all for his players and he has a great feel for the game. He’s also a fun coach to be around, really enjoyed being with team Guam and EJ for two weeks,” said Borja.

Borja will be in the national team pool for the upcoming years. For this year, there are no significant tournaments so team Guam is basically done for the year. However, the next couple of years have big events for basketball with FIBA events, the Asian Indoor Games, Asian Games, Guam Invitational Basketball Tournament, and the Mini Pacific Games upcoming.

If time permits, Borja will likely be included for some (if not all) of these events. Borja still has long term goals in following the footsteps of teammates Joe Blas, Willie Stinnett and Tai Wesley and playing basketball professionally.

As a freshman, Borja will adjust to his new environment in San Francisco.

“I’m going to miss home and most especially my family,” said Borja.

All the best of luck ‘Big’ Ben!