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Local hero wins King of the Rock; Miller bows out in 2nd round

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ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/news-special1/sports/9/19/willie-miller-091916.jpg"/><figcaption><div class="embed-desc">Willie Miller represented the Philippines in the King of the Rock Finals and reached the second round. Handout photo </div></figcaption></figure></div>MANILA, Philippines – Filipino star Willie Miller saw his journey in the Red Bull King of the Rock Finals end in the second round last September 17, while a local basketball hero wound up winning the event in Mali Kalemegdan, Belgrade, Serbia.Miller, a two-time PBA Most Valuable Player, represented the Philippines in the world&#x27;s largest one-on-one street basketball competition. In its debut season in the Philippines, the Red Bull King of the Rock held qualifiers in Cebu, Caloocan, and Quezon City. Twenty-four of the country&#x27;s top street ballers engaged in an intense elimination round, with Miller and Fil-Am Robbie Herndon as the last two men standing in the finals.READ: <a href="http://sports.abs-cbn.com/basketball/news/2016/08/04/willie-miller-replaces-fil-am-rep-int-l-1-1-tournament-13971">Willie Miller replaces Fil-Am representative in international 1-on-1 streetball tournament</a>Herndon eventually took home the crown but decided to step down, paving the way for Miller&#x27;s ascension as the Philippines&#x27; representative to the King of the Rock Finals. Miller&#x27;s campaign concluded in the second round of the tournament, however, while Serbia&#x27;s Stefan Kojić went on to win the title in front of over 3,000 supporters in Belgrade.Kojić, spurred on by a passionate crowd, came out on top in a tough final showdown against Lithuanian foe Karolis Sarukas, winning 14-12.It was an inspiring win for Kojić, who faced a setback when he had to receive a medical treatment due to an injury sustained in his semi-final match against Georgia&#x27;s Vakhtang Kadaria.&quot;It was unbelievable,&quot; Kojić said. &quot;I don&#x27;t know how to express my feelings. My victory is just one more piece of evidence that Serbia is a basketball country.&quot;&quot;We have the best 3x3 team, plus our national basketball team is second in the world and the Olympics,&quot; he added.Alexei Zakarov of Russia took third place in the tournament that drew the best 32 street basketball players from 20 countries.The best players from 21 countries - from the Netherlands to Argentina, from Russia to Angola - made their way to Belgrade after advancing through the 64 qualifying tournaments all around the world to face off in a true showdown.For more sports coverage, visit the <a href="http://sports.abs-cbn.com/" target="_blank">ABS-CBN Sports website</a>.

Filipino star Willie Miller saw his journey in the Red Bull King of the Rock Finals end in the second round last September 17, while a local basketball hero wound up winning the event in Mali Kalemegdan, Belgrade, Serbia.

Filipino star Willie Miller saw his journey in the Red Bull King of the Rock Finals end in the second round last September 17, while a local basketball hero wound up winning the event in Mali Kalemegdan, Belgrade, Serbia.