Roundup

PSSBC lures Baguio, Cebu schools

Two provincial teams will be competing in the Philippine Secondary Schools Basketball Championship (PSSBC) Rain or Shine Elastopaint Cup which starts Dec. 15 at SGS Stadium in Quezon City. PSSBC chair Terry Que announced that University of Baguio has been invited to test their skills against the best teams from UAAP, NCAA and Fil-Chinese Amateur Athletics Federation (FCAAF) while University of Cebu secured a spot in the annual tournament after topping the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. (Cesafi) tournament. “Aside from helping the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas discover new talents, we in the PSSBC want to promote the highest standard of sportsmanship, competition and fair play among athletes,” said Que, who co-owns Rain or Shine in the PBA with Raymond Yu. This year’s edition will also mark the return of Xavier School while other schools taking part in the event backed by Blackwater Sports’ Dioceldo Sy and Dickies Underwear’s Rudy Yu are, among others, UAAP’s Far Eastern U, National U and University of Santo Tomas.

Halep, Osaka opens 2019 season in Sydney

SYDNEY—World No. 1 Simona Halep and US Open champion Naomi Osaka will headline a strong field in the women’s draw of the Sydney International. Eight of the world’s top 10 have signed on for the Jan. 6 to 12 event, a warm up for the Australian Open Grand Slam the following week. Defending champion and Wimbledon winner Angelique Kerber will also play. —AFP