Regional rivals clash in MBA opener

It will be survival of the fittest for the First Phase of the Metropolitan Basketball Association starting on June 3 this season.

The Southern Conference teams and their counterparts from the Northern Conference mix it up right away, with the three worst performers after the double round robin eliminations heading to the exits.

Conference rivalry, however, will be highlighted in the inaugurals as reigning national titlist Andok’s San Juan and LBC Batangas collide at 3 p.m. at the San Juan Gym after a one-hour opening ceremony.

The second game featuring traditional rivals Negros and Cebuana Lhuillier will be held at 5:30 p.m. at the University of St. La Salle Coliseum in Bacolod City.

FedEx Laguna makes its debut against LBC Batangas at 5:30 p.m. on June 6, following the 3 p.m. encounter between Nueva Ecija and San Juan. Both games are set at the San Luis Sports Complex.

Socsargen and Davao see action only on June 8, when action shifts to the Rizal Memorial Colleges Gym. Socsargen meets Cebuana Lhuillier at 3 p.m., while Davao faces Negros at 5:30 p.m.

Tournament format also calls for the fourth-ranked and the fifth-placed teams to knock each other out on Aug. 8, with the winner advancing to the semifinals.

The best-of-three semifinals pit the top qualifier against the quarterfinal survivor and the No. 2 placer against the No. 3 finisher in a similar series. Winners of both series will then dispute the First Phase championship in a best-of-seven affair.

Unlike last year, the win-loss records of the teams during the First Phase won’t be carried over to the Second Phase, which starts on Sept. 15.

Its distinguishing feature is that the teams from the same conference will have to play against each other twice in the elimination round, with the top three teams from each conference qualifying for the semifinals. As a reward, the conference top placers will draw byes.

From the Second Phase will come the conference titlists and eventually the national champion.

In-between the First and Second Phase, there will be an MBA All Star weekend on Sept. 1-2, featuring the best of the North against the best of the South.