THE Seaba Championship and the Seaba Under-16 Championship will both be held from May 12 to 18 at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas executive director Renauld ‘Sonny’ Barrios said the federation has decided to hold the tournament on the same dates.
“Sa Under-16, mag-uumpisa ng 10 a.m. ‘yung mga games, then 3 p.m. onwards ‘yung men’s,” said Barrios.
The Philippines was recently awarded the hosting rights for the Seaba seniors tournament, which is a qualifier for the Fiba Asia Cup. The Seaba Under-16, meantime, is a qualifier for the Fiba-Asia Under-16 Championship.
With the two tournaments to be held at the same time, 12 teams will be playing for the week-long basketball competitions including seven in the seniors squads in Gilas Pilipinas, Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Myanmar.
Barrios said it will still be a challenge to host the event due to the number of teams participating, but the SBP is not worried, with its experience in hosting tournaments. Last year, the Philippines hosted the Fiba Olympic Qualifying Tournament at the Mall of Asia Arena.
“Hindi rin natin masasabing madali pero siguro madali in the sense na may experience na tayo sa Fiba-Asia, club championships, and the Fiba OQT last year. So lahat na ng learnings, nandoon,” said Barrios.