Arellano, Enderun reach HoopBattle finals

MANILA, Philippines — Team Arellano and Team Enderun bested 10 other rivals to clinch the last two berths in the VIVO HoopBattle Championship Philippines Finals set at Market! Market! in Taguig tomorrow.

Arellano edged Enderun for top honors in the final elims leg at Fairview Terraces in Novaliches, QC last week. The two teams join the six other squads, which topped their respective sides of the four-leg eliminations held at various Ayala Malls in Metro Manila, in the Phl finals expected to draw a huge crowd tomorrow.

Arellano and Enderun foiled Tune Squad, Herons, MCM, Triple B’s, EAC Pride, Twice, New Kicks Ballhandlers, EUDEX, Team Regal and D&B Titans to gain a crack at the Phl leg crown of the pioneering event, an annual 3x3 basketball tournament held in some districts in China and other Asian countries. The Phl leg is presented by AyalaMalls Synergies, Inc. and Vivo.

The other finalists are Team Ballers and Metro Star Realty, which topped the first Phl leg at Glorietta; F4 and BS Susim Shipping teams, which ruled the second stop at TriNoma; and Team Just Coco and Team Core, which reigned at South Park.

Organizers expect a spirited battle in the finals starting at 1 p.m. to be graced by a team from China. The top two squads join the other top finishers in other Asian tournaments in the grand championship slated in October in Suzhou, China.

Spicing up the finals is the fun three-point shootout between Team Phl and star players from China – Jason Song of the 2016 HoopBattle Journey reality TV show, and fellow ABL Kungfu mainstay Camel Luo and Young Sean, the star player of Peking U and member of the 2014 FIBA 3x3 world tour Beijing Masters.