Okinawa awaits Cebu U15 stars

Recreating the EASL Final Four atmosphere in the two-day Future Champions Elite All-Star Tournament was something that league CEO Henry Kerins imagined when he conceptualized the landmark grassroots U15 platform last year. When it finally happened at the Kai Tak Arena Sports Hall in Hong Kong last weekend, the dream came true.

Kerins has transformed EASL from a summer conclave of pocket tournaments to an annual home-and-away season with eight teams on the first year to 10 on the second and 12 on the third. This coming fourth campaign, EASL is set to expand to 16 teams, allocating two slots for the PBA. So far, 11 entries are confirmed with Hong Kong Eastern and Hou Chon of Macau the latest to qualify. Early qualifiers were three Taiwan P.League+ teams (Taoyuan Pauian Pilots, Taipei Fubon Braves, TSG Ghosthawks), three Japanese B-League squads (Ryukyu Golden Kings, Nagasaki Velca, Alvark Tokyo), two Korean Basketball League clubs (Busan KCC Egis, Goyang Sono Skygunners) and Xac Broncos of Mongolia. In talks to join are teams from Mainland China.

A recent development involving EASL and FIBA was the decision to qualify three EASL teams to BCL Asia moving towards participation in the FIBA Intercontinental Cup. The affiliation cements the close relationship between EASL and FIBA, affirming EASL’s recognition on the global stage.

The Future Champions program is a grassroots development model aimed to identify U15 talent in Asia and lay out a runway to prepare players for the next steps in building a basketball career. Cebu, which hosted EASL’s first Final Four, was chosen to represent the Philippines in the pioneer Future Champions undertaking. Over 200 barangay players showed up for tryouts in Cebu last April and 40 were chosen to undergo intensive training supervised by EASL-mentored coaches over eight weeks. From 40, 10 were picked to comprise the Cebu City Elite All-Star squad that battled Macau, Hong Kong A-City Dragons and Hong Kong B-Jungle Kings last weekend.

Cebu’s roster was made up of Domenic and McDome de Asis, Kent Labitad, Venz Nadela, Dwayne Rojo, Dereck Wenceslao, Ian Inocencio, Duke Tadlas, Kieffer Villarin and Brix Hernando. Coach was former University of San Jose-Recoletos guard Joel Co. Cebu got off on the wrong foot, losing its first game to the Dragons, 36-27 but rebounded to beat Macau, 20-17 and the Jungle Kings, 31-20. In the title contest, Cebu repeated over Macau, 61-52. There was widespread celebration on Cebu streets where fans gathered on roadside TVs to watch the YouTube live steam of the final. Witnessing the victory in Hong Kong were SBP executive director Erika Dy, Cebu City Sports Commission chairman Dr. Rhoel Dejano and SBP Region 7 head Popoy Navarro. The team received a hero’s welcome on arrival at the Cebu Airport. No Philippine team has crashed the EASL Final Four in three seasons and it took a Cebu U15 squad to nail the country’s first-ever crown in EASL history through the Future Champions Elite All-Star Tournament.

Kerins described the festivities as “awesome” with fans treated to a weekend of basketball attractions, including public booths, interactive activities and merchandise stands. Late next month, five Cebu players – Labitad, Nadela, Rojo, Domenic de Asis and Wenceslao – will travel to Okinawa to join other top Asian U15 players in a youth training academy organized by the Ryukyu Golden Kings. Additionally, four Cebu players were offered athletic scholarships by the University of San Jose-Recoletos. EASL is making things happen in growing basketball on and off the court.