CAGERS from San Beda-Taytay are coming back to represent the Southern Tagalog Region and defend he secondary boys’ basketball crown in the 2017 Palarong Pambansa in San Jose, Buenavista, Antique
Last year, the Red Cubs led the way as they struck gold in the ballgames and shared the top honors with the National Capital Region when it was held in Legazpi City.
That year, the Red Cubs drew strength from their outside shooting and running game, swamping the Central Luzon selection, 92-72, in the secondary boys’ basketball finals at the Ibalong Centrum Recreation gymnasium.
San Beda-Taytay athletic director Edmundo Badolato confirmed the team’s participation in the coming Palaro.
Their team captain Sam Abu Hijleh, who scored 16 points for the Red Cubs in that game is coming back with most of his teammates.
And their presence is expected to make the Southern Tagalog bets the odds-on favorites.
Overall, the National Capital Region finished their campaign in 2016 with 104 golds, 46 silvers and 47 bronzes for the overall title, while Region IV-A took second (38-43-59), with Western Visayas in close third (35-35-39) and with Central Visayas in fourth (29-31-29).
This year, San Beda-Taytay showed how good they are after they beat Sacred Hear of Cebut, 79-61, in the recent National Basketball Training Center Division 1 finals.
In that game, Evan Nelle came up with an MVP performance, unleashing a game-high 18 points, five rebounds, two assists and three steals.
This year’s Palaro will have a total of 367 gold medals at stake.