E-Gilas looks to reclaim SEA crown

MANILA, Philippines — E-Gilas Pilipinas is determined to reclaim its throne against five rivals in the Southeast Asian Conference when the FIBA Esports Open returns with an explosive third edition this weekend.

The Nationals, represented by Playbook Laus Esports (PLE), take on foes from Indonesia, Vietnam, Maldives, Sri Lanka and Mongolia in another virtual FIBA tournament (NBA2K).

This is a shot for redemption for the Philippines after losing the crown to Australia in the second edition last November following a 0-2 defeat in the best-of-three finals.

E-Gilas bagged the inaugural championship last June with a 5-0 sweep of Indonesia.

From 17 countries in the first event and 38 in the second, the booming online tourney has ballooned to 60 national federations for the FIBA Esports Open III from April 16 to May 9.

Apart from Southeast Asia, also on tap this weekend are the Africa and Middle East Conferences followed by North America and Europe Conferences on April 23-25. The South America tourney is on May 7-9.