What’s Up Cebu Basketball?
Bleacher Talk
May 21, 2007
What’s Up Cebu Basketball?
What’s happening to local basketball? As I write this, I feel a sense of de ja vu as I’ve decided to write about a topic that I also discussed around a year ago today when I was worried about the state of local basketball. Talking about local basketball these days brings up a mix of questions, kudos and concerns.
If you take the viewpoint of one who has followed the local basketball scene since the 70’s, you can’t help but be worried. Why? If you talk about local ball today, the only topic to discuss is collegiate basketball. The CESAFI and the Partners Cup series remain to be the only leagues “alive.” But both are essentially one and the same set of teams using different league names or “titles.” I take my hats off to CESAFI Commissioner Boy Tiukinhoy and lawyer-sportsman Merong Estenzo for doing their share of putting up a league other than the CESAFI. But I just can’t help but say that there’s something missing in local ball: the local commercial league.
On the side, I can’t consider the Mindanao Visayas Basketball Association (MVBA) to be a local league since it’s regional in scope. But it’s very much a welcome sight to local fans when games are played here. The bad news is that its Cebu games aren’t going to be too often, as the league needs to go around the various Vismin teams’ hometowns. The Visayas Amateur Athletic Association (VAAA) is a nice attempt at regional ball for collegiate teams, but sustaining it may be a problem.
Today, gone is the series of basketball leagues and tournaments that kept us local fans headed to the hardcourts of the USC Gym or Cebu Coliseum all-year long. The commercial leagues were always the busiest, from the days of the Cebu Amateur Basketball Association (CABA), the Cebu Amateur Basketball League (CABL), the Cebu Basketball league (CBL), the Cebu Basketball Federation (CBF) and the Mandaue Inter Commercial Athletic Association (MICAA).
During the “heydays” of local commercial ball, the year revolved around a perfect blend of collegiate and commercial basketball ideally scattered throughout the year. The year usually kicked off with the first conference of the commercial league from January to March. This was followed by a summer league or conference around April to June. The commercial league then gave way to the collegiate league between July and October. The commercial leagues then took over around November and even had a host of “annual” short-term Christmas tournaments. What happened to all these?
Would you like to reminisce with me? Remember the days when Conpinco and Gaisano were household names in the local leagues? Then came the likes of Mama’s Love, El Rancho, Crispa and M. Lhuillier? Remember Jolas, Duhig, Ampalayo et. al.? Go back further? How about the Najarro brothers, Willy Generalao, Al Solis and Anthony Mendoza? How many of you remember Turing Gerasmio? I’m sure many of you out there can remember more names than I can. Did you say Marlowe Jacutin, Glenn Orlanes, Biboy Ravanes and Manny Paner? Those were the days! We watched all of them strut their stuff at the USC Gym, and boy did we enjoy those games. They were the superstars of local basketball, and although not all of them made it to the PBA, they still had us trooping to the USC Gym each time they played. How I wish I could say the same today. And the absence of a commercial league hasn’t helped Cebu Basketball at all.
One of the reasons why we need a commercial league is that this usually serves as stepping stone or breeding ground for collegiate players looking for that much-needed exposure and extra income before moving on to the big city. Without a commercial league, Cebu might end up with fewer products in the big leagues.
A current-day case study? Look at today’s crop of Cebu products in the PBA. They didn’t jump straight from the Cebu collegiate scene directly to the PBA. They needed the local commercial league to hone their skills, bang bodies with their much older veterans and grow to become wiser players. Dondon Hontiveros’ stint in the Philippine team today wouldn’t have been possible if he didn’t play for Sunpride in the local leagues, and later the Cebu Gems in the MBA. The same is true for John Ferriols, Roger Yap, Junthy Valenzuela, Donbel Belano and Jimwell Torion. Without a commercial league, what are the options for today’s collegiate players? The last batch of Cebu prospects who had the opportunity to play in the local leagues are now in the PBL: Proctoy Quiñahan and company. What do we have to offer for the likes of Jonathan Canceran, Alain Abellanosa, Rino Berame and Ariel Mepaña?
The summer is almost over and ever since the folding of the CBF, we haven’t had a summer league of a local commercial league. The big question is how long this is gong to last.
Cebu Basketball just isn’t complete without the Cebu commercial league.
***
Time-out: To our dear brand new mayor of Lilo-an, Hon. Duke Frasco and sports page colleague and councilor, Hon. Bobby Motus: One task that will make us Lilo-anons really love you is if you do something about the rush hour traffic jams at the Cebu North Road and Bag-ong Dan in the Tayud/Yati area. I’m sure you know that this was never addressed in the past. Thanks in advance! >>> You can reach me at bleachertalk@yahoo.com.
May 21, 2007
What’s Up Cebu Basketball?
What’s happening to local basketball? As I write this, I feel a sense of de ja vu as I’ve decided to write about a topic that I also discussed around a year ago today when I was worried about the state of local basketball. Talking about local basketball these days brings up a mix of questions, kudos and concerns.
If you take the viewpoint of one who has followed the local basketball scene since the 70’s, you can’t help but be worried. Why? If you talk about local ball today, the only topic to discuss is collegiate basketball. The CESAFI and the Partners Cup series remain to be the only leagues “alive.” But both are essentially one and the same set of teams using different league names or “titles.” I take my hats off to CESAFI Commissioner Boy Tiukinhoy and lawyer-sportsman Merong Estenzo for doing their share of putting up a league other than the CESAFI. But I just can’t help but say that there’s something missing in local ball: the local commercial league.
On the side, I can’t consider the Mindanao Visayas Basketball Association (MVBA) to be a local league since it’s regional in scope. But it’s very much a welcome sight to local fans when games are played here. The bad news is that its Cebu games aren’t going to be too often, as the league needs to go around the various Vismin teams’ hometowns. The Visayas Amateur Athletic Association (VAAA) is a nice attempt at regional ball for collegiate teams, but sustaining it may be a problem.
Today, gone is the series of basketball leagues and tournaments that kept us local fans headed to the hardcourts of the USC Gym or Cebu Coliseum all-year long. The commercial leagues were always the busiest, from the days of the Cebu Amateur Basketball Association (CABA), the Cebu Amateur Basketball League (CABL), the Cebu Basketball league (CBL), the Cebu Basketball Federation (CBF) and the Mandaue Inter Commercial Athletic Association (MICAA).
During the “heydays” of local commercial ball, the year revolved around a perfect blend of collegiate and commercial basketball ideally scattered throughout the year. The year usually kicked off with the first conference of the commercial league from January to March. This was followed by a summer league or conference around April to June. The commercial league then gave way to the collegiate league between July and October. The commercial leagues then took over around November and even had a host of “annual” short-term Christmas tournaments. What happened to all these?
Would you like to reminisce with me? Remember the days when Conpinco and Gaisano were household names in the local leagues? Then came the likes of Mama’s Love, El Rancho, Crispa and M. Lhuillier? Remember Jolas, Duhig, Ampalayo et. al.? Go back further? How about the Najarro brothers, Willy Generalao, Al Solis and Anthony Mendoza? How many of you remember Turing Gerasmio? I’m sure many of you out there can remember more names than I can. Did you say Marlowe Jacutin, Glenn Orlanes, Biboy Ravanes and Manny Paner? Those were the days! We watched all of them strut their stuff at the USC Gym, and boy did we enjoy those games. They were the superstars of local basketball, and although not all of them made it to the PBA, they still had us trooping to the USC Gym each time they played. How I wish I could say the same today. And the absence of a commercial league hasn’t helped Cebu Basketball at all.
One of the reasons why we need a commercial league is that this usually serves as stepping stone or breeding ground for collegiate players looking for that much-needed exposure and extra income before moving on to the big city. Without a commercial league, Cebu might end up with fewer products in the big leagues.
A current-day case study? Look at today’s crop of Cebu products in the PBA. They didn’t jump straight from the Cebu collegiate scene directly to the PBA. They needed the local commercial league to hone their skills, bang bodies with their much older veterans and grow to become wiser players. Dondon Hontiveros’ stint in the Philippine team today wouldn’t have been possible if he didn’t play for Sunpride in the local leagues, and later the Cebu Gems in the MBA. The same is true for John Ferriols, Roger Yap, Junthy Valenzuela, Donbel Belano and Jimwell Torion. Without a commercial league, what are the options for today’s collegiate players? The last batch of Cebu prospects who had the opportunity to play in the local leagues are now in the PBL: Proctoy Quiñahan and company. What do we have to offer for the likes of Jonathan Canceran, Alain Abellanosa, Rino Berame and Ariel Mepaña?
The summer is almost over and ever since the folding of the CBF, we haven’t had a summer league of a local commercial league. The big question is how long this is gong to last.
Cebu Basketball just isn’t complete without the Cebu commercial league.
***
Time-out: To our dear brand new mayor of Lilo-an, Hon. Duke Frasco and sports page colleague and councilor, Hon. Bobby Motus: One task that will make us Lilo-anons really love you is if you do something about the rush hour traffic jams at the Cebu North Road and Bag-ong Dan in the Tayud/Yati area. I’m sure you know that this was never addressed in the past. Thanks in advance! >>> You can reach me at bleachertalk@yahoo.com.
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