Outright championship berth for team that sweeps Cesafi elimination round proposed
The pot of gold that awaits any team that sweeps the elimination round of the upcoming Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc. (Cesafi) basketball tournament is one worth pursuing.
This, after it was proposed that an outright spot in the championship round be given to teams that complete the formidable task, during the basketball coaches’ meeting yesterday at the Cebu Coliseum function hall.
“This should have happened last year,” said University of Cebu’s (UC) decorated mentor, Yayoy Alcoseba in jest. Alcoseba was at the helm of the Southwestern University (SWU)-Phinma squad that won all its games in the double-round elimination round but received no incentive for it.
The Cobras were later eliminated from title contention after losing to the eventual collegiate champions, University of the Visayas (UV), in the round-robin semis.
“But I’m upbeat about the upcoming season. It’s good that we’ve learned from the mistakes, the controversies, and have kept moving forward,” added the two-time Cesafi champion coach.
Under the proposal, the elimination round for the men’s tournament would retain the double round-robin format. However, there is no longer a quarterfinal round, with the top four finishers immediately advancing to the semifinal round.
There, the top and second seeds would be armed with a twice-to-beat advantage over the third and fourth seeds. The winners of the Final Four would then compete for the crown in a best-of-three finals series.
The high school division’s elimination round would remain a single round-robin with the top four finishers also moving on to the semifinals.
Athletic directors are also proposing that 19-year-old players be allowed to compete in the collegiate division even though they’re still in senior high school.
The Cesafi’s Board of Trustees are set to convene on July 5 to decide on these amendments and more.
The brand new season of the Cesafi opens on August 5 with a blockbuster match-up between UC and SWU.
The game is expected to carry a lot of history after Alcoseba ended his five-year tenure with the Cobras — a team he led to two titles — last March before signing on to coach the Webmasters.