Side-events spice up All-Star Batangas stop

The cream of the PBA dead shots and dunk artists are all set to wow the crowd on Friday at Batangas City Coliseum.

Also in store for the fans in Batangas is a rare moment where PBA big men take part in the Obstacle Challenge—a skills event usually reserved for the smaller, quicker guys.

These skills showpieces usher in the second leg of the 2018 PBA All-Star series, pitting the Smart National Team versus the PBA Luzon All Stars.

The All-Star Game is set at 7 p.m. where coach Leo Austria has at his disposal Japeth Aguilar, Calvin Abueva, LA Tenorio, Paul Lee, Jason Castro, Stanley Pringle, Matthew Wright, Marcio Lassiter, Alex Cabagnot, Arwind Santos, Ian Sangalang and Raymond Almazan as they challenge the national squad gearing up for the third window of the Fiba World Cup qualifiers.

Donning the Smart Team Philippines jersey in Batangas are June Mar Fajardo, Carl Bryan Cruz, Troy Rosario, Mac Belo, Allein Maliksi, Terrence Romeo, Gabe Norwood, Jio Jalalon and Kiefer Ravena.

Team Philippines prevailed versus the Luzon All Stars in Lucena last year.

The Batangas All-Star spectacle starts at 4 p.m. with the holding of the keenly awaited Obstacle Challenge, the Three-Point Shootout and the slam-dunk competition, in that order.

Former MVP Asi Taulava leads the big men in the Obstacle Challenge.

Sonny Thoss, Raymond Aguilar, JP Erram, Kelly Nabong, Russell Escoto, Ken Bono, Justin Chua, Aldrech Ramos, Beau Belga, Gabby Espinas and Yousef Taha are also entered in one of the highlight events in this PBA midseason classic presented by Phoenix Fuel with Phoenix Pulse Technology.

Meanwhile, titleholder Allein Maliksi and former champs Terrence Romeo and James Yap will shoot for the three-point crown.