PBA upbeat on Govs’ Cup

MVP James Yap of the Veterans squad makes a pass off Paul Lee of the RSJ in Sunday’s well-attended All-Star Game in Laoag. August dela Cruz

LAOAG—The Philippine Basketball Association is looking forward to the coming Governors’ Cup to put an exclamation point to the league’s banner season.

The season-ending, import-spiced event opens on Sunday at the Ynares Center in Antipolo with all 10 teams parading potentially explosive reinforcements who are limited to 6 feet 5—the height needed in what the majority of coaches consider as a “sprint” tournament.

Teams battle it out in a single-round elimination with the top six advancing to the semifinal round with their records carried over. The top two squads after this stage will then clash in a best-of-seven title series.

Any team, however, that wins four of its five matches in the semifinal round but fails to land in the top two will have the incentive of clashing in a one-game playoff with the No. 2 squad for a place in the championship series.

At no time in the tournament will the quotient system be enforced, thus assuring that  teams will go all out for a win each night.

The league grossed over P91 million at the gates last year, and the current leadership, led by chair Mamerto Mondragon of Rain or Shine, has declared that the target is to break that all-time high mark.

With the success of the recent Commissioner’s Cup, which grossed about P15 million in the title series alone, the PBA is on course.

The unparalleled success of the All-Star Weekend that ended here Sunday night was also a very encouraging sign, according to commissioner Chito Salud.

“Our games must continue to be attractive and exciting,” Salud told reporters here. “Sports, after all, is all about excitement.”

Salud said the weekend was a success not just because it was a hot ticket here but also because the players showed renewed commitment in interacting with the fans.