MANILA, Philippines – Two reinforced Philippine clubs shoot for a 3x3 basketball title and international tournament berths when the Chooks-to-Go 3x3 Asia Pacific Super Quest gets going from April 6 to 7 at the SM Megamall Fashion Hall.
The Pasig Grindhouse Kings headline Pool C with the quartet of Joshua Munzon, Taylor Statham, Troy Rike, and Serbian import Nikola Pavlovic, while 1Bataan Risers mix it up in Pool B with mainstays Alvin Pasaol and Santi Santillan together with guest player Karl Dehesa and American import Travis Franklin.
Led by Munzon, the Kings hope to sustain their winning form in the Level 8 tourney just a week after bagging the crown and the P1 million prize in the Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3x3 President's Cup.
"I think we are as ready as we can be. We have been preparing for the last 3 months for this," said Statham. "Me, Troy, and Josh have played together and we have some great players who have been helping us out. We know that we can compete with the world's best."
The Kings take on Indonesia's Jakarta West Bandits at 11:40 am and Taipei's Absolute 3x3 Basketball at 3 pm on Saturday.
1Bataan Risers, the President's Cup runners-up, battle the American-laden Anytours M1 of Hong Kong at 12:40 pm and world No. 19 Tokyo Dime of Japan in Pool B.
"Ito na yung bunga ng pinaghirapan namin kaya expect niyo na lalaban kami," said Pasaol. "Hindi lang ang sarili namin ang nire-represent namin dito kung hindi ang buong Pilipinas."
(This is the fruit of our hard work so expect us to come out fighting. We’re not just representing ourselves but the whole Philippines.)
Mongolia's Ulaanbataar, Australia's TSV Reading Cinemas, and Korea's Enerskin slug it out in Pool A, while New Zealand's Aotearoa, Vietnam's Saigon Aces, and China's SSLC battle in Pool D.
The top two teams in each pool will advance to the knockout playoffs on Sunday.
For league commissioner Eric Altamirano, who has handled a lot of national 3x3 teams, the two Philippine squads are more than ready to compete against the region's best and finest.
"I've never been to a 3x3 tournament where we have sent teams that are more prepared than these two. Before, we just field last-minute teams,” admitted Altamirano. "We've given them enough time to be ready since they are playing in a real 3x3 league. I'm confident that they can compete with the international teams." – Rappler.com