MANILA, Philippines?The maiden season of Liga Pilipinas unfolds June 11 with Ilocos Sur and Misamis Oriental hosting the opening-day north and south matches, respectively.

Twelve other teams will vie for the first Liga title, namely, Pampanga Buddies, M. Lhuillier Cebu Niños, Baguio Victory, Taguig Batang Global, Laguna Stallions, Iloilo Warriors, Zamboanga Amores, Pagadian Explorers, Ozamiz Cotta, Quezon team, Batangas Barakos and the Cavite Heroes.

Bacolod, one of the first teams to sign up for the league, was surprisingly not included in the roster of entries released by Liga organizers Monday.

The Cebu Niños installed themselves as the early favorite, after ruling the south pre-season tournament, while Laguna and Pampanga were the top teams from the north.

A formal launching at the Casino Español Grand Ball Room in Cebu City is set Tuesday night with team owners, board members, and league officials unveiling the regional amateur basketball tournament.

Expected to grace the launch are BAP-Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas president Manny V. Pangilinan, vice chair Ricky Vargas and outgoing executive director Patrick Gregorio.

Liga CEO and president Noli Eala presided over a media conference Monday where he announced the holding of a team owners unity basketball game at the Cebu Coliseum at 9 a.m. Tuesday followed by a VIP lunch at the Crown Regency Hotel.

The full schedule will be announced to the teams at 2 p.m. Cedelf P. Tupas, contributor