Secretary General Graham Lim, who was appointed basketball committee chairman of the Asian Universities Sports Federation (AUSF), said the week-long championship hopes to gather six of the best basketball-playing universities of Asia.
Leading the list in the powerhouse roster of teams are China’s Beijing Industrial College, Chinese-Taipei’s Physical Education College and Korea’s Choonang University.
A collegiate titlist from Japan and a representative champion university from a Southeast Asian country are also being considered.
St. Francis of Assisi, led by Yancy de Ocampo, earned the right to represent the Philippines to the six-nation tournament after winning the National Students Basketball Championships (national inter-collegiate) in San Pablo City last February.
University of Manila, starring Biboy Simon, ruled the initial staging of the cagefest also in Manila in January of 1998. The Hawks upset a sweet-shooting Chinese-Taipei side in the finals.