AFTER a successful first season, the Tigers Basketball League (TBL) will kick things off by coming home for its opening game on Aug. 26 at the Quadricentennial Pavilion.
Like last year, the opening match will be an all-star game that will feature alumni Growling Tigers including previous UAAP Most Valuable Players Bal David, Gerard Francisco and Dylan Ababou, and former star players such as Danny Melencio, Jervy Cruz, and Jun Dizon.
For its second season, the league has expanded and will now field 10 squads headlined by the defending champion Red Cross. John Joseph Fernandez, dean of the College of Architecture will be the league’s new commissioner.
Carlos Fenequito, a former Growling Tiger and last season’s commissioner, told the Varsitarian that the league will now be “more interactive.” Games will be played every Sunday starting Aug. 30 at the YMCA Gym in Ermita, Manila.
He shared that the league aims to raise awareness among Thomasian students and alumni, but reiterated that camaraderie is the main goal.
Fenequito also noted that the TBL is a way for UST to become attractive to prospects that want to see how the university treats its athletes.
“Kahit hindi ganoong kalakihan ang maitutulong, ang aim ng programa ay tulungan ang mga bata ng lahat ng alumni para magkaroon ng support system kasi magagamit talaga ang samahan natin para sa future nila,” he said.
In its opening game during the inaugural season last year, members of the 1996 four-peat championship team, led by coach Aric del Rosario, carved out a 99-97 victory over the 2006 championship team, led by Cruz, Japs Cuan, and Ababou.
The defending champion Red Cross will look to defend their title with an all-new lineup. Philip Martin L. Matel
