Philippine Patriots owners Tonyboy Cojuangco and Mikee Romero hold the ASEAN Basketball League (ABL) championship trophy as they join the members of the team during the awarding ceremony Tuesday in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. (Photo by ALI VICOY)

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – The Philippine Patriots formally received their championship rings Tuesday for winning the inaugural ASEAN Basketball League (ABL) tournament at the luxurious Garden Hotel here.

Dressed in Barong Tagalog, the Patriots, led by team owners Mikee Romero of Harbour Centre and Tonyboy Cojuangco, got their gold-plated rings from league founder and Malaysian business tycoon Tony Fernandes.

The Patriots won the title in style as they swept Indonesia’s Satria Muda BritAma in their best-of-five title series.

"I would like to congratulate this team because they worked so hard for it. They underwent a lot of sacrifices to win the championship trophy," said Patriots co-owner Mikee Romero.

It was the 10th crown for the Harbour Centre boss after winning seven straight titles in the Philippine Basketball League, the Southeast Asian Games and the SEABA Champions Cup championships held in 2007.

"We actually thought that the ABL season would be a walk in the park. It didn't turn out that way but we worked so hard for it and we enjoyed our time participating in this league," said team co-owner Tony Boy Cojuangco.

The Patriots won 11 of 15 games during the elimination round then swept aside both the KL Dragons and Satria Muda to claim the league's first-ever title.

The night was doubly special for Warren Ybañez and import Jason Dixon as they won the Finals MVP plum and Best Import award, respectively.

Dixon averaged 13.9 points and 10.1 rebounds highlighted by 16 double-doubles in the last 17 games.

The season MVP went to the Thailand Tigers lefty forward Attaporn Lertmalaiporn.

A new crop of Patriots will likely join next season as some of the current players on the team are hoping to play in the PBA either through free agency or in the annual Rookie Draft.

Barako Bull, which signed a sponsorship deal with Harbour Centre recently, is reportedly eyeing several members of the team like Rob Wainwright, Jerwin Gaco, Ybañez, and Christian Coronel.