Sinag Liga Asya inaugural tournament draws 11 teams

The Sinag Liga Asya promotional poster.

CEBU CITY, Philippines — A total of 11 teams will vie in the first season of the Sinag Liga Asya (SLA) at the Bren Z. Guiao Convention Center in San Fernando, Pampanga.

This was officially announced by league chairman Rocky Chan.

The tournament will be bannered by the vaunted Pampanga Delta, which snatched the overall national title of the inaugural season of the Pilipinas Super League (PSL) 21-U tilt last year.

The rest of the competing teams are Luid One Kapampangan, Passion Sports Elite, NBS Slashers, Batang Lakan, J Project Guang Ming College, Paranaque Pelicans, LDG San Pedro, Antipolo L.E.A.P. Basketball, Hustle Rising Suns, and Laguna Datzlav X EOZ Construction.

The Converge Fiber X-backed tournament will have a single-round elimination where the top eight teams advance to the quarterfinals. The top two teams will earn a twice-to-beat advantage for the crossover semifinals.

The top two teams will then dispute the title in a knockout championship match to determine the champion of the Luzon leg.

It can be recalled that the Sinag Liga Asya Visayas and Mindanao legs were launched here in Cebu City last July with the dates yet to be determined, organizers said.

SLA is the newest 21-under league in the county which aims to discover new basketball talents and strive to make a presence internationally.

SLA plans to bring the champion team to various tournaments in Southeast Asia and will bring in teams from Malaysia, Singapore, Cambodia, and Indonesia for pocket invitational tournaments in the future.

Grassroots basketball tournaments like the Sinag Liga Asya have been sprouting around the country recently especially now that health restrictions due to COVID-19 have been lowered.  /rcg

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