MEMBERS of the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc. (Cesafi) promised to be at their best and to play their best to give the audience a chance to see marquee basketball action in the 1st Mayor Inocentes Cabaron Inter-Collegiate Basketball Tournament.
“I am asking the coaches to be at their best to give our residents a chance to witness quality basketball action,” Mayor Cabaron told the coaches during a meeting at the Moalboal Municipal Hall on Friday, March 24, 2023.
Cabaron was joined in the meeting by Moalboal sports committee members Rodolpho Borja, Romeo Pableo, Viviencio Delgado and Salvador Balicoco, while Cesafi was represented by deputy commissioner Danny Duran.
Duran also told the coaches during the meeting that the event is sanctioned by Cesafi and penalties will carry over during the regular season if merited. This means any player who gets thrown out for unsportsmanlike conduct will pay a fine and will be suspended for one game.
Present during the meeting were coaches from the University of Cebu, University of Southern Philippines Foundation, Cebu Institute of Technology-University and the University of San Jose-Recoletos. The organizers are still waiting for word from the University of San Carlos whether it will send the Warriors for the tourney.
“We are very grateful to Moalboal for inviting Cesafi for this tournament. We will make sure that the fans will enjoy the games and that this will be successful,” Duran said during the press conference held after the meeting.
The tournament will start on April 14 and will be played on Friday and Sunday. It will follow a single round-robin with the top two teams fighting for the title and the P200,000 prize. The Nos. 3 and 4 will play for third and the P100,000 prize, while those that fail to advance to the knockout phase will settle for P20,000.
Meanwhile, Borja, a local sports patron and owner of the Tubu Masters basketball team, is planning an exhibition match pitting the champions of the tournament against his team of locals who will be backed by a couple of professional players.
The basketball tournament is just one of a series of sports events initiated by Mayor Cabaron for the town fiesta in May. Moalboal will also hold a chess tournament for kids and residents, a 20-board simul with IM Rico Mascarinas, an arnis tournament, a Mobile Legends tournament and a dayondayon competition. (PR)