Long queues were seen at the Araneta Center ticket center where the remaining general admission tickets were sold for P55 each. One fan, 36-year-old Joseph Sinco, had to come as early as 2 a.m. just to be the first in line. “I went here at 2 a.m.,” said Sinco, an Ateneo alumnus who graduated with a Computer Science degree in 1994. Some had to hire stand-ins for a fee to wait in line for them.
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Attendance reached 22,900 ticket holders as announced during the television coverage. It was the second biggest crowd this season. The record was 23,443 in the UAAP Cheer Dance competition last Sept. 8... A mass attended by commissioner Chito Narvasa, his deputies and referees was held before the game at the commissioner’s office.
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Security was super tight with extra uniformed and non-uniformed personnel with bomb-sniffing dogs posted from every side of the venue... Even the players, coaches, officials, television crew and mediamen entering the South Gate had to undergo three inspections before making it through the Big Dome.
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Philippine Sports Commission chair Butch Ramirez did not miss the action, too. Ramirez, accompanied by executive director Fr. Vic Uy, however, wore a neutral color although he was an Ateneo de Davao alumnus.
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Unknown to many, operatives of the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group were also posted inside and outside the venue as part of the CIDG’s campaign to rid the league of unscrupulous individuals allegedly involved in game-fixing. – Joey Villar