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| Officials of Samahang Basketball Ng Pilipinas (SBP) and Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA) all smiles in preparation for the Philippines' hosting of the FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers' third window in Clark. (Image Source: Tiebreaker Times) |
The Philippines is set to host the third and last window of the FIBA Asia Cup 2021 Qualifiers on February following the overwhelming success of its Gilas Pilipinas national men's basketball team in its campaign held last November and December in Manama, Bahrain. And after further discussions with FIBA officials regarding the matter, the Samahang Basketbol Ng Pilipinas (SBP) stated that the games in the said windows are set to take place at Clark, Pampanga using the same facilities used by the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) during the staging of its recently concluded 2020 Philippine Cup with the exception of an electronic scoreboard which will be surprised by none other than FIBA itself.
SBP executive director Sonny Barrios told the press in a Zoom huddle along with officials of the SBP and Bases Conversion Development Authority (BCDA) that it was the international basketball governing body that asked if the Philippines can host the games under the PBA bubble. He also talked about the facilities slated to be used for the qualifiers in the presence of Smart Communications and SBP president Alfredo Panlilio and BCDA president Vince Dizon. Through these huddles and discussions, the scheduled games within the qualifiers will be held inside the Angeles University Foundation gymnasium in Angeles City, Pampanga beyond understanding.
Clark will host eight national teams from Group A which includes the Gilas Pilipinas men's basketball team along with teams from South Korea, Indonesia and Thailand and Group C featuring teams from New Zealand, Australia, Guam and Hong Kong. Tighter measures are expected in Clark as Panlilio announced that FIBA will set its own guidelines for the qualifiers and eventually be closely linked to the existing protocols imposed by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF-EID). For Dizon, some of the safety protocols implemented within the PBA bubble will be improved for the FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers including regular testing of players and other members of the delegation upon entering the bubble and during the games as well as mandatory isolation while waiting for the RT-PCR test results.
