By Jesus A. Garcia Jr.

AFTER six weekends of hostilities since last September 25 with two days of pause on October 8 and 9, the province’s only multi-stage basketball cagefest this year, “Excellent Noodles Cup DBL Pangasinan Inter-Town/City/School U18 Basketball Tournament 2022,” only four teams remain unbeaten in the boys division, and one squad in the girls category, so far as of October 27.

The boys of former Dagupan City dad Chito Samson, the multi-titled University of Luzon Golden Cubs under the tutelage this time of Gilmark Meneses, lead the pack in the Central Conference with four wins, sans loss, while San Carlos City swept its assignments to take the front in the Western Conference with six victories without loss and the first team to qualify for the quarterfinals.

Meanwhile, the Asingan and Alcala teams are evenly unblemished in the Eastern Conference carding 4-0 apiece. (Alcala also leads the six-squad girls division with a 5-0 mark).

One of these two best teams in the eastern Pangasinan side will be broken when they clash with each other morning of October 29 to be hosted by Asingan at Sapigao Sports Complex. “Expect the unexpected,” as the saying goes because I believe the venue will be full of spectators because I know the Ilocano speaking Pangasinenses are such fanatics in this James Naismith-invented sport (basketball). Proof? It already produced well-known professional cagers like Romualdo Cabading of Villasis, father-and-son Danny and Dave Ildefonso and Marlon Magat of Urdaneta City, Marc Pingris, Jiffy Faundo and father-and-son Floriendo and Ren-Ren Ritualo of Pozorrubio, CJ Perez of Bautista, to name some. According to the league’s top honcho Dr. Edil Abalos, the last two games in the elimination rounds will end on October 29 and 30 and two teams each of the three conferences in the boys division or a total of six squads will enter the quarterfinals on November 5, 6, and 12.

Abalos also explained that the top four teams in the girls division after the elimination round will automatically enter the semifinals, meaning no more quarterfinals skirmishes for them, unlike in the boys division, and will be held on November 13. Of course, the top four squads in the boys division that passed the quarterfinals will reach the semifinals slated on November 19.  Abalos elaborated that the best two teams in the league will clash for the championship in the best-of-three series format scheduled on November 20 and 26. Venues for the quarterfinals, semifinals and the championship skirmishes will be known after the elimination rounds.

Unfortunately, my town Mangaldan carding 1-2, as of this writing, as well as Binalonan, Umingan, Villasis, San Jacinto, Sual, Urbiztondo, Binmaley, to name some, are already out of contention for the quarterfinals. Mangaldan will host two no-bearing games against Villasis morning of October 30 and Umingan in the afternoon of the same date at MYDC gym. See you there, guys.

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QUOTE OF THE WEEK: Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. ROMANS 6: 12-13

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