Basilan Steel joins Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup

FOLLOWING their unceremonious exit in the 2019-2020 Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) Lakan Cup Division Finals, Basilan Steel is set to compete in the Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup slated to begin on April 9.

Basilan Steel team manager Jax Chua confirmed to Buzzer Beater their participation in the fledgling regional league, which will be officially announced in a press conference today.

“Yes we will be participating in the Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup,” Chua said. “This will be a good opportunity for our players after we were not able to finish our campaign in the MPBL.”

Basilan Steel was knotted at 1-1 in the best-of-three MPBL Southern Division Finals against eventual champion Davao Occidental Tigers-Cocolife when the league was halted last year due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

However, when the league resumed this month, Basilan’s match against Davao Occidental was postponed as two of their players tested positive for COVID-19.

After seven days of quarantine, four more players of Basilan Steel were infected with the virus, forcing the league to default them and advance Davao Occidental to the MPBL finals, which they won against San Juan Knights-Go For Gold. “It was very unfortunate for our players to not able to finish the MPBL. They have prepared for a year for the resumption of the league,” Chua said. “I was also saddened to our fans in Basilan since they have cheered and supported us in every game.”

“Joining here in the Pilipinas VisMin Super Cup was like a payback to our Basilan fans so that they can still cheer and support us,” he added. “We are looking forward to a great campaign here.”

According to Chua, Basilan Steel will parade the same players in their MPBL squad minus Allyn Bulanadi, who is recovering from an injury, and Philip Manalang, who is fighting for a spot in the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters roster.

“We will have an intact lineup. Kung sino ‘yun mga players namin sa MPBL, sila pa din ‘yung lalaro dito,” said Chua. “These players were loyal to us so even if some teams are trying to pry them away from us, they still chose to stay with Basilan.”

Aside from Basilan, also vying in the Mindanao Division are the Cagayan de Oro Rafters, Pagadian Explorers, Zamboanga City, Sindangan, and a Roxas Zamboanga del Norte./PN