THE 12-field tournament Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3×3 President’s Cup fires off this weekend and all combatants have expressed readiness for it, including teams from San Juan and Bataan.
Known as the “Knights,” the San Juan-Go For Gold team is composed of former Philippine Basketball Association campaigners Mac Cardona, John Wilson and Larry Rodriguez, joined by young guns Larry Muyang, Mike Ayonayon and Cedric Pelayo.
The Bataan Risers, meanwhile, are bannered by collegiate standouts Alvin Pasaol of the University of the East, Sean Manganti of Adamson, Santi Santilla of La Salle, and Ateneo’s Anton Asistio. They will be joined in the team by veteran Chito Jaime.
The Knights and Risers said that the about-to-start tournament will be a tough one in more ways than one but they are nonetheless determined to make things happen and succeed in it.
“It’s a learning experience for the players with the different rules, different ball, and faster pace. With our pre-season outcome though, I think we can have a good chance,” said team governor Chris Conwi in the lead-up to the tournament.
“The team is very excited but we will just enjoy the games and not put too much pressure on us. Hopefully we will be at our best,” he added.
The Knights are bracketed in Group A alongside the Valenzuela Classic and the Zamboanga Valientes.
Bataan, meanwhile, said it carefully selected the members of their team and believes it got the players it wanted.
“Actually all of them are capable leaders. It’s just a matter of chemistry between the players and shifting leadership on the fly. We would like them to assume leadership positions when they are able to,” said Bataan team owner Anthony Zubiri.
Adding, “There is no strong or weak player and we designed it to be that way.”
Like San Juan, the Risers are also not putting too much pressure on them but underscored that they are in it to win it.
“We want to enjoy the game. If you enjoy the game, hopefully, we can perform well. As you’ve seen with the Risers, we have been going all out in building it from the ground up. This is the same mindset we are using with the Risers 3×3 team,” said Mr. Zubiri, referring to their team in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League, which is one of the top ball clubs.
The Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3×3 President’s Cup is a tournament that has the winner having a chance to compete at the world stage.
In the Pilipinas Cup, which begins on Feb. 16, there will be six legs. The league will follow FIBA’s 3×3’s format with one champion team per leg.
Teams will be ranked according to the point system under FIBA. The rankings for the grand finals will be determined by the points gathered by the teams during the first five legs.
The top four teams will automatically gain a quarterfinals berth in the Grand Finals.
Besides winning the President’s Cup, the winner will get P1 million and a chance to represent the country in the FIBA 3X3 World Tour.
All the games will be held at either at SM Megamall or SM Fairview. Moreover, all legs will be shown live on ESPN5. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo
