Mac Tallo is one of the eight competing in the King of the Rock National Finals. (CDN PHOTO/LITO TECSON)
Eight Cebuanos led by former Cesafi MVP Mac Tallo will try to be named the king of streetball as they compete in the Red Bull King of the Rock National Finals today at the Baluarte de Dilao in Intramuros.
The other seven representatives from Cebu include Tallo’s teammate, Jun Luz, former University of San Carlos guard Dominic Adlawan, ex-University of San Jose-Recoletos forward Fletcher Galvez, Brian Gabasa, Karl del Pio, Jon Chua and Joevince Canizares.
Tallo, the Southwestern University star, will be on to watch although the spunky guard hasn’t been able to prepare well because of his studies.
“Well (I feel) a little bit of excitement,” Tallo, son of former PBA player Mark Tallo said. “To tell you honestly, it’s a good opportunity but I think this is not for me.
I didn’t actually prepare for this upcoming event because I was too busy with my exams and didn’t even have a chance to practice.”
Both Chua and Adlawan, on the other hand, expressed their excitement of facing off against players from outside of Cebu in this you-lose-and-you’re-out tournament.
“Excited and overwhelmed with this experience of being able to face players outside of Cebu,” shared Chua.
Adlawan braced himself for some tough opposition.
“I feel very excited and thrilled for tomorrows finals. I’m also expecting the level of competition to be high so I’m just going to give it my all and I’m just really excited about everything, especially facing players from manila because we all know that Bisaya versus Tagalog competition is always there.”
Red Bull King of the Rock is the world’s most prestigious one-on-one street basketball tournament. After a series of qualifying events taking place around the world, the best and toughest finalists (Kings and Queens) face off to crown the new champion. The tournament follows a straightforward concept where players battle head-to-head in raw outdoor basketball, using a single-elimination tournament bracket.
Games last five minutes and are subject to regulation hoops rules and scoring (two and three pointers). After each game, the loser walks away, and the winner faces his next opponent.