Basketball in 2012

Cebu Basketball in 2012 will be highlighted by the fact that school-based and youth basketball became the biggest activities of the year. Gone are the days when semi-pro commercial leagues would dominate the scene, giving fans a spread from young to old. It was a year that featured the developmental side of Cebu Hoops showcasing Cebu’s stars of the future.

Leading the pack was the CESAFI 2012 basketball tournament that saw the return of a traditional powerhouse to the top and the historical run of another to its first ever CESAFI (or CAAA) title. Southwestern University (SWU) was always known in the past as a basketball power in the collegiate scene, but faded away somewhere. At the re-birth of college basketball with the launch of CESAFI in 2000, the Cobras were never considered to be a threat or favorite to win a championship. Ditto for Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu (SHS-AdC) in the high school scene. The Magis Eagles were even branded as the whipping boys of Cebu who were known for their good looks and fancy cars. That was then. SWU finally struck gold when they won the CESAFI title over the University of the Visayas (UV) in a thrilling five game series this year, while SHS-AdC scored its first every CESAFI High School championship via a three game sweep over UV. Gone are the days when UV and UC were the only teams winning CESAFI championships. This has made the collegiate and high school basketball scene more exciting as the field has become more competitive. Later in the year, SWU made it to the Final Four of the Philippine Collegiate Champions’ League (PCCL), bowing to the top guns from the UAAP and NCAA.

Going down younger to the two lower age groups, UV made up for its misses in the seniors and juniors division by winning a historical first by bagging the Cebu and Visayas Passerelle (Under 15) division championships of the Milo-sponsored BEST SBP Passerelle Twin Tournament. The Passerelle Lancers then placed second to La Salle Greenhills in the national finals. Not bad for a Passerelle program only on its third year of operations. The University of  San Carlos (USC) banked on a united front to reclaim the Small Basketeers Philippines (SBP) division (Under 12) championship of both the Cebu and Visayas levels. The Baby Warriors also bowed to LSGH in the SBP national finals to take second place. USC proved that it could match up with the NCR champions as they beat the SBP Archers in the classification round, but breaks didn’t go USC’s way in the championship game where they fell behind early and didn’t have enough time to stage an end-game rally. But over-all, it was a gallant performance by all.

The Central Visayas Regional Athletic Association (CVIRAA) was the other major tournament which was topped by reigning juniors champion SHS-AdC and SBP title holder USC. SHS-AdC, representing Mandaue City, topped the UV-manned Cebu City team in another championship face-off for the high school division crown, while USC (Cebu City) ousted Dumaguete City at their hometown to bag the CVIRAA elementary division title. Both teams will represent the CVIRAA at the Palarong Pambansa which the Central Visayas will host in April 2013 in Dumaguete City.

Other tournaments deserving mention was the ThreeSixty Pharmacy Cup 2012 organized in partnership with the Cebu Youth Basketball League (CYBL). The TSP Cup featured four age groups and over 40 teams. USC South nipped USC North for the championship of the Under 10 age division, while Cebu Eastern College topped UV in the Under 13 age group. UV won the Under 16 title over SHS-AdC as Adgers Sportswear outlasted USC/RDAK in the Under 19 division.

UV added two more feathers to its youth program’s cap as it also won the inaugural staging of the SBP National Under 16 basketball tournament staged in Baguio City. It also won the first run of the Coca Cola PBA Youngstars Basketball tournament Cebu and Visayas legs before placing second to San Beda/Taytay at the national finals held last summer. Another summer spectacle catching attention is the fifth district’s Congressional Cup featuring Under 19 teams from Cong. Red Durano’s district. This has given the youth of the area a home-and-away format of a tournament similar to the MBA of old.

While we’re delighted to write about the achievements of the youth scene, one thing missing has been the semi-pro commercial league that provided basketball entertainment for us fans. They have all come and gone. Liga Pilipinas? CBF? CBL? NBC? MVBA? Where are they now? What we have these days are ex-pros and ex-commercial players going the “panalay” way, acting as guns for hire who play for “commercial” teams in barangay fiestas and the numerous “Mayor’s Cups” around the province. These tournaments still draw a lot of attention and following, but are overnight sensations more than long term programs. Nevertheless, the most popular tournaments are those in Lapu-lapu, Consolacion, Carcar, Toledo and other towns. We wish that this program could be enhanced to become a more cohesive movement for commercial level players so its impact can be felt all year round.

That was Cebu Basketball in 2012. It featured the youth, the schools; the future.

***

Time-out: The UV-LSGH and USC-LSGH Passerelle and SBP championship games will be aired over BTV on December 22 at 3pm with a replay on December 25 at 5pm. >>> You can reach me at [email protected].