ALCANTARA ‒ The Visayas leg of the Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup will tip-off on Friday afternoon with a doubleheader at the Alcantara Civic Center in this quaint town located south of Cebu City.
The country’s first-ever professional basketball league in the south will tip off with a game between the highly-touted MJAS Zenith-Talisay City Aquastars and the Tubigon Bohol Mariners at 4 p.m.
This will be followed by the main game featuring the KCS Computer Specialist-Mandaue City and the Siquijor Mystics at 7 p.m.
While there won’t be any fanfare during the opening ceremony owing to the strict health protocols that organizers are implementing in this league that is regulated by the Games and Amusements Board, the highlight will no doubt be the games themselves as players relish their return to the hardcourt after being away for more than a year.
“I’m very excited to play since I haven’t done so in more than a year,” said veteran marksman Patrick Cabahug of MJAS Zenith, one of four former PBA players on the squad.
Also on the team are Paulo Hubalde, Val Acuña, and Lester Alvarez.
They’ll be facing off against a Mariners team that is being led by former University of the East standout Pari Llagas and Mac Montilla, who previously played for Parañaque and Manila respectively in the Chooks-to-Go Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL).
Meanwhile, KCS head coach Mike Reyes said that he now feels much better about his team’s chances with the players now having a more solid grasp of what he wants to happen on both ends of the floor.
“They understand the pace that we want them to play at as well as our defensive principles,” shared Reyes, whose team will have three returning pros in Ping Exciminiano, Al Francis Tamsi, and Gryann Mendoza along with MPBL standout Joseph Nalos and Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc. (CESAFI) MVP Shaquille Imperial.
On Saturday, the Tabogon Voyagers will face off against the ARQ Builders-Lapu-Lapu Heroes at 4 p.m. followed by the tiff between the Mystics and the Dumaguete Warriors at 7 p.m.
