■ CESAFI USES NEW FORMAT TO AVOID CONTROVERSY
After getting heavy criticisms last year, Cesafi changes the format of the Cesafi basketball tournament
Instead of a round-robin semifinals, this year’s basketball season will now follow a 1 vs. 4 and 2 vs. 3 semifinals format.
After being hounded by controversy and criticism last season, the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc. (Cesafi) changed the format of this year’s basketball tournament.
Instead of a round-robin semifinals, this year’s basketball season will now follow a 1 vs. 4 and 2 vs. 3 semifinals format.
“So that there won’t be any controversies. There won’t be any ‘bigayan,’ we might as well change the format,” Cesafi commissioner Felix Tiukinhoy Jr. told SunStar Cebu.
The collegiate division will play in a double round-robin elimination phase, where the top four teams will advance to play in the semifinals. The top two seeds will have a twice-to-beat advantage.
Last year, Southwestern University (SWU) finished at first place in the elimination round of the collegiate division with a 12-0 record.
However, the Cobras were eliminated after a very odd circumstance. After losing to the University of the Visayas (UV), SWU’s title hopes were in the hands of Green Lancers. Had UV lost against the University of San Carlos, it would have sent SWU home. UV, the third seed, lost to fourth seed USC, and that was the end of SWU’s amazing season. UV then went on to beat USC 3-1 in the best-of-five championship series.
Also this year, a team that will sweep the elimination round is rewarded outright a spot in the championships. The third and fourth seeds will then play a knockout game and the winner will take on the second seed, which has a twice-to-beat advantage.
The high school division, in the meantime, will follow a single round robin format. The top four teams will then advance to the semifinals.
Meanwhile, the new rule that has been proposed where a senior high student who is 19 years old, which is above the high school cutoff, can play in the collegiate team on the same school system will be decided upon by the board on July 5.
The basketball season opens on Aug. 15 and it will be highlighted by a collegiate division game between University of Cebu (UC) and SWU.
This will be the first time that decorated coach Yayoy Alcoseba will face his former team since bolting for a coaching job in UC.
The other game will be a high school match also between SWU and UC.