| No. 12 – Blackwater Bossing | |
|---|---|
| Position | Power forward /small forward |
| League | PBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born | February 23, 1998 Silay, Negros Occidental, Philippines |
| Nationality | Filipino |
| Listed height | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Bacolod Tay Tung High School (Bacolod) |
| College | De La Salle Benilde |
| PBA draft | 2024: 2nd round, 20th overall pick |
| Selected by theRain or Shine Elasto Painters | |
| Playing career | 2024–present |
| Career history | |
| 2024 | Pampanga Giant Lanterns |
| 2024 | Marikina Shoemasters |
| 2024-present | Blackwater Bossing |
Miguel Ives G. Corteza (born February 23, 1998) is a Filipino professionalbasketball player for theBlackwater Bossing of thePhilippine Basketball Association (PBA). He played his collegiate career first with theDe La Salle Green Archers in 2018 before moving to theBenilde Blazers in 2019.
During thePBA season 49 draft, he was selected by theRain or Shine Elasto Painters with the 20th pick. His draft rights were later traded toBlackwater Bossing for a future second-round pick.
Corteza represented Bacolod Tay Tung High School in theNational Basketball Training Center (NBTC) Bacolod leg in 2017.[1] However, his school was upset byUniversity of St. La Salle in the regional finals.[2]
Corteza was a part of PBA Young Stars under Tay Tung High School in 2014.[3] He played center when the team beat the West Negros University, scoring 14 points, 10 rebounds, and 8 assists to completely dominate the game[4]
In NBTC, Corteza played for the Tay Tung Thunderbolts and contributed in the basketball scene inNegros Occidental. He also played for Team Bacolod in the 3x3 Batang Pinoy National Finals and won the title withSJ Belangel andJesmar Pedrosa.[5]
Corteza was recruited toDe La Salle Green Archers in 2018.[6] However, he left the Green Archers after one year at the same time with Aaron Waban,Jollo Go and Mark Dyke due to changes of staff and limited minutes inSeason 80.[7]
He then transferred toCollege of Saint Benilde.[8] When asked about his career in Taft, Corteza said in an interview withSpin.ph, "I have no bad blood with La Salle. I still support them. Lasalyano pa rin naman ako."[9] He served one year of residency before being eligible to play for theNCAA Season 97 in 2022.
Under both CoachCharles Tiu andTY Tang, Corteza was quick to be one of the main contributors of the Blazers, averaging 8.7 points and 5.5 rebounds but the team failed to secure a semifinal slot inSeason 97.[9] Corteza's consistent performance made him known in the collegiate scene inNCAA Season 98.[10] He had 18 points, three rebounds, and three assists in a win over theSan Sebastian Stags to start the season 2–0.[11]
They got their third straight win against theUPHSD Altas in which he had 15 points and seven rebounds.[12] Against theLetran Knights, he had 18 points and seven rebounds, but lost the ball in the last eleven seconds of the game, leading to their first loss of the season.[13]
In a win over theMapúa Cardinals, he scored 22 points and also provided eight rebounds.[14] In a rematch with the Stags, he had 18 points as the Blazers got back into the Final Four for the first time since 2002.[15] Before the Final Four, he sprained his right ankle, but he was able to play through it.[16] In their Final Four match against theSan Beda Red Lions, he only scored seven points, but grabbed 12 rebounds as the Blazers returned to the Finals for the first time in 20 years.[17]
In the Finals, they faced the defending champions, the Letran Knights.[18] In Game 1, he scored 18 points, but he and his teammates suffered cramps throughout the games and they lost. He bounced back in Game 2 with 21 points, 10 rebounds, and four assists, and the Blazers forced a do-or-die Game 3.[19] The Blazers though, couldn't get the win in Game 3, and Letran got its third straight championship.[20] He averaged 17.67 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.0 steals in the Finals.[21]
To begin his senior season, he led with a game-high 21 points alongside four rebounds and five blocks in a loss to theLyceum Pirates.[22] He scored 21 points again in a win over theJRU Heavy Bombers.[23] He then had a double-double of 14 points and 11 rebounds in a loss to San Beda.[24] However, they started the season 1–3.[25] In a game against theEAC Generals, he had 15 points and six rebounds before he injured his ankle in the last two minutes of that game.[26] Despite the injury, he was able to play in the next game, and nearly get a double-double with 12 points and nine rebounds.[27] They got to fourth place in the standings with a win over the Cardinals in which he had 17 points and nine rebounds.[28] Then they moved up to third place in another game against JRU in which he had 18 points and five rebounds.[29] In the Final Four, they were defeated by the Cardinals.[30] They finished third place in the tournament overall by beating Lyceum.[31] In his final game, he had 14 points.
In February 2024, Corteza was listed in the lineup for theMaharlika Pilipinas Basketball League'sPampanga Giant Lanterns. He made his professional debut in the2024 Preseason Invitational inGeneral Santos, where Pampanga won the preseason championship.[32]
In June 2024, Corteza was traded to theMarikina Shoemasters for Joe Gomez de Llaño.
He was drafted 20th overall pick by theRain or Shine Elasto Painters in thePBA season 49 draft. Shortly, ROS traded him toBlackwater Bossing in exchange for a future second-round pick.[33]
Corteza then inked a one-year deal with the Blackwater Bossing.[34]
| Legend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
Season-by-season averages
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Pampanga | 16 | 2 | 12.5 | 46.3 | 40 | 66.7 | 2.6 | 1.1 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 8.1 |
| 2024 | Marikina | 2 | 0 | 23.3 | 45.2 | 40 | 66.7 | 7 | 2 | 1.5 | 0 | 18 |