90th NCAA Season features All-Star game

MANILA, Philippines — The National Collegiate Athletic Association serves up an extra treat as the country’s oldest collegiate league stages an All-Star basketball game this season.

“We’ve decided to hold it not just to encourage players to play better, but also to raise funds for charity,” said NCAA management committee chair Paul Supan of host Jose Rizal University in Tuesday’s PSA Forum at Shakey’s Malate.

Season 90 kicks off this Saturday with an opening ceremony at 11:30 a.m., followed by a double-header pitting defending champion San Beda and JRU at 1 p.m. and San Sebastian and Letran at 3 p.m. at Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay.

The All-Star match, which will feature the standouts of the league’s 10 teams, will be held right after the first round of eliminations in August.

Vying for a fifth straight championship, the Red Lions stand as favorite anew as they boast a virtually intact lineup.

“There’s no such thing as a weak opponent, because when you play a champion team, everyone wants to beat you,” said San Beda board member Jose Mari Lacson.

Perpetual Help, which crashed into the Final Four last year, expects to put up another strong showing after a solid run in the preseason tournaments.

“There’s a oneness in the team that I haven’t seen in past teams of Perpetual,” said Altas board representative Jeff Tamayo.

St. Benilde, meanwhile, eyes a second straight overall title after snapping San Beda’s three-year reign.

Aside from basketball, hostilities in taekwondo, badminton, swimming, table tennis and chess fire off in the first semester.

The second semester features action in volleyball, lawn tennis, football, cheerleading, beach volleyball and track and field.

“We continue to challenge our players to do everything necessary to succeed,” said St. Benilde board member Dax Castellano.

Arellano, which was granted regular membership just two months ago, aims to put its focus beyond basketball after surprisingly landing fourth in last season’s race for the overall crown.

“We’re aiming for third, we just want to take it a step at a time,” said Arellano representative Peter Cayco.