MORE and more student-athletes are taking up basketball at a tender age and getting better and better so much so a few may even be potential candidates for future Philippine national youth teams for players aged under under-13 and/or under-15.
For the past several months, this Hoopster has been attending games in the 1st Philippine Ching Yuen Athletic Association basketball competitions at the Uno High School Gym in Manila.
In the Boys’ High School (Juniors) Division, Uno High School scored a dramatic, come-from-behind one-point victory over host Saint Jude Catholic School to snare the crown.
In the Boys’ Developmental Division for players aged 11-and-under, Makati Gospel Church-New Life Christian Academy completed a 9-0 finish with a finals’ victory over Grace Christian College.
Ongoing is the PCYAA Aspirants Open Division tournament for players aged 13-and-under. There are eight schools in action – founding members Uno High School, Saint Jude Catholic School, Grace Christian College, Saint Peter the Apostle School, Philippine Cultural College and Makati Gospel Church-New Life Christian Academy and guest teams Pace Academy and Icure-Jubilee Christian Academy.
During the single-round elimination phase, the Judenites topped the field with an unblemished 7-0 record. Philippine Cultural College grabbed second place at 6-1 and Pace Academy (a 12-year school that is set to have its first batch of high school graduates next month) settled for third at 5-2.
The other competing schools with their respective win-loss cards: Icure-Jubilee Christian Academy, 4-3; MGC-NLCA, 3-4; Grace Christian College, 2-5; St. Peter the Apostle School, 1-6; and Uno High School, 0-7.
The quarterfinal playoffs, featuring all eight schools, are set to start on Saturday, February 8, at the Uno HG Gym. The top four squads after the elims will be enjoying a twice-to-beat advantage over their respective opponents during the quarters.
The top players in this six-week competition, most of whom are still in Grade 7 or at the elementary (intermediary) level, include Joao Filipino and long-range specialist Calvin Uy of St. Jude, Jharles Uy, Lian Dy and stratospheric Daniel Manalang of the PCC Seagulls, Getson Lim, Jeff Lugay and Pol Antiporda of the Pace Academy Pacers, tournament scoring leader Carlo Lim and Kyle Barraza of Icure-JCA, and cool and calculated backcourter Sebastian Choi of Grace Christian College.
More on these youthful athletes and the PCYAA Aspirants Division playoffs in our next column.