Team representatives and organizers of the Sinulog Cup 2024 Basketball Tournament pose for a group photo during its launching at the Cebu City Hall on Friday. | CDN Digital photo / Glendale Rosal
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Some of the best commercial basketball teams in the Visayas and Mindanao will vie for supremacy in the Sinulog Cup 2024 Basketball Tournament scheduled from January 23-27, 2024.
The tournament will field six commercial teams from Cebu, Bacolod, Tacloban, Ormoc, and Marawi City, while two Cesafi member schools will join this cash-rich basketball tournament sponsored by the Sinulog Foundation Inc. (SFI).
In a press conference, the organizer and founder of this tournament, Cebu City Councilor Dondon Hontiveros believes that Cebuano basketball fans will enjoy top-level basketball action next week.
“We are doing this basketball tournament mainly for the Sinulog Festival, but we promise everyone we won’t compromise the level of competition. So, everyone should expect the highest level of competition with the presence of these teams and their top-caliber players,” said Hontiveros in a presser on Friday at the Mayor’s conference room in Cebu City Hall.
The six commercial teams are Z-Nars Jewelry-Marawi, Team Khalifa Leyte, OCCCI-Ormoc Sheermasters, United Negros Basketball League (UNBL) of Bacolod City, Chase Tower Runs of Chase Cokaliong, and the defending champions EGS.
“Last year, we had four commercial teams and four collegiate teams. This year, we formatted the tournament after the Sinulog Festival itself that’s why we have a qualifying round for the eight collegiate teams. Ang modaog nga top two maoy moduwa sa tournament proper kung sa Sinulog pa ang grand parade,” Hontiveros said.
“We wanted this to be a regular part of the festivities because we want everyone nga ma feel pa nila ang presence sa Sinulog bisan humana ang grand parade and also to promote Sinulog through sports tourism,” he added.
Hontiveros was joined by the tournament’s commissioner Jave Mike Aton, Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) Region 7 deputy director Jonathan Saso, and SFI’s executive director Elmer “Jojo” Labella during the presser.
Also present were the head coaches and team representatives of the six commercial teams.
Bracket A of Sinulog Cup 2024 will be comprised of EGS, Team Khalifa Leyte, and UNBL. The last spot in bracket A will go to whoever will win, between the University of Cebu (UC) Webmasters and the University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) Jaguars, in their knockout game later tonight at the Cebu City Sports Institute.
On the other hand, Z-Nars Marawi City, Chase Tower Runs, and OCCCI will play for bracket B, while the last spot will be given to the winner of the knockout game between Southwestern University-Phinma Cobras and the CRMC Mustangs.
The first two days of the tournament proper starting January 23 will be played at the Cebu City Sports Institute, while the semifinals and finals will be at the Cebu Coliseum. The games at the Cebu City Sports Institute are for free, while organizers are yet to determine the entrance fee for the games that will be held at the Cebu Coliseum.
The Sinulog Cup 2024 champion team will take home P150,000, while the second runner-up will get P100,000, and P50,000 for the third placer. The fourth place will pocket P25,000.
Non-winning teams won’t go home empty-handed as they will also each receive P12,500 as consolation prize.
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