SBP closely monitoring COVID-19 situation

MANILA, Philippines — The Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) is closely monitoring the situation in pandemic epicenter Metro Manila as it prepares for its hosting of the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers next month.

The country is scheduled to stage the Group A games featuring Gilas Pilipinas, Korea, New Zealand and India in a bubble setup from Feb. 24-28 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

SBP president Al Panlilio said the federation is constantly coordinating with Philippine authorities amid the sudden spike in new cases and the rising threat of the Omicron variant.

“No change as of now but we are continuing discussions with the IATF (Inter-Agency Task Force) and PSC (Philippine Sports Commission),” Panlilio told The STAR yesterday.

Based on the latest schedule released by the FIBA last Dec. 23, eight games will be played at the Big Dome, combining the reset November 2021 window and the succeeding February 2022 window. Gilas is slated to face off with rival Korea twice, and New Zealand and India once.

Metro Manila has been placed under the stricter Alert Level 3 classification from Jan. 3-15, which may be extended beyond the original end date if ground conditions still won’t improve.

As of yesterday, Health Secretary Francisco Duque said the NCR is already at “critical risk” for COVID-19 transmission.