Mac Tallo leads Cebu Chooks in the Fiba 3×3 World Tour Cebu Masters. –CHOOKS PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines—Cebu is hosting a world class basketball event this weekend as the Fiba 3×3 World Tour Cebu Masters 2022 unfurls at SM Seaside on Saturday.
Fourteen teams including two from the Philippines will compete in the two-day, max level tourney with $40,000 at stake for the champion team.
“We are bringing the biggest basketball event in Cebu. All we’re doing is leaning towards the Olympic Qualifying Tournament,” Chooks-to-Go President Ronald Mascariñas said during the event’s presser at Radisson Blu.
“Hopefully, with God’s blessing, the Philippines gets to play in Paris,” he added.
Cebu Chooks will play in Pool A with Antwerp and Omaha.
Pool B will have Riga, Utsonomiya Brex, and Sansar MMC energy while Pool C will have the trio of 2022 Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas International Quest champions Saitama, Jeddah, and Amsterdam.
The Qualifying Draw (QD) will have Manila Chooks, Ludhiana and Doha. The victors at the end of QD will complete Pool D, where it will go up against Ulaanbaatar MMC Energy and Lausanne.
Manila’s 3×3 head trainer Chico Lanete reminded his players to play their game and not overthink about rankings and the likes.
“I told the players, let’s not think that they are stronger, think of it as we are equals,” he said.