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HS all-star game slated for this Sunday

For the first time ever, the best basketball-playing high school seniors from all over the country will get together in an all-star game.

Dubbed the SEAOIL High School All-Star Showcase, the game will take place on Sunday, March 4 at 11AM at the Ynares Center in Pasig and will feature 30 of the best high school ballers divided into two teams of 15 each.

The game is a project of the National Basketball Training Center (NBTC), which is jointly run by National University coach Eric Altamirano and Powerade Tigers assistant coach Alex Compton. It's the culmination of a long process of selection that saw around 70 young players strutting their stuff in front of a jury of great basketball minds that included, aside from Altamirano and Compton, San Beda coaching legend Ato Badolato and under-16 national coach Olsen Racela.

Badolato, the head of selection committee, made sure that provincial players were well-represented, seeding six players from key cities outside Metro Manila into the 30-player pool.

"The mission of this program is trying to find out who are the best high school players not only in Metro Manila but all over the country," said the multi-title coach at the event's press conference. "Being a former high school coach, I believe that high school is a very important step in the development of a player. This is the aim of the NBTC, to teach the boys not only basketball but everything they have to learn in life. When it comes to basketball, they are being taught all the fundamentals they can bring wherever they go.

"In Metro Manila, we selected 60 from the various leagues — UAAP, NCAA, Tiong Lian. There were even 11 or 12 from the provinces who joined the tryouts. So out of these 60 or so top players, we selected 24 to go with the six seeded players from the provinces to form the 30-player pool."

As a reward for winning the championship in their respective leagues, Jeff Napa of the UAAP champion NU Bullpups and Britt Reroma of the NCAA champion San Beda Red Cubs will coach the two 15-player teams.

"We're really giving an opportunity for high school players who are done with their playing years to really showcase their talent in a game," said Compton. "Iyong mga ibang players dito sa all-star game, baka kilala niyo na. May pangalan na sila sa high school basketball. Iyong mga iba, wala pa. Pero hindi ibig sabihin walang galing iyong bata."

Compton was referring to blue-chip players like Xavier's Jeron Teng, LSGH's Thomas Torres, Mapua's Jay Alejandro, Chiang Kai Shek's Kevin Baytan, and San Beda's G-boy Babilonia, who were also present at the press conference, and some of whom have already committed to major college programs. But the game will also present an opportunity for the likes of Cagayan De Oro's Coco Jabines and Cebu's Julius Cadavis to catch the eye of Manila-based college scouts.

"We're saving a lot of time for everyone by gathering all the players in one game," noted Altamirano, who added admission to the game is free and is open to the public.

"It's Coach Eric's brainchild," Compton said. "We just ran the event. But Coach Ato and Coach Olsen helped us choose who are the best players who will make the all-star game."

Also on hand at the launching was SBP executive director Sonny Barrios, who lauded the NBTC for its commitment to grassroots development. The NBTC has programs for different age groups, and many of the players in the Sunday showcase moved up through the ranks and suited up for the various youth teams.

"The truth is, if we had three more NBTCs, kami sa SBP baka pakamot-kamot lang ng tiyan," Barrios joked. "They're really doing a good job dito sa grassroots development."

On Friday night at the Philsports Arena, the 30 players will undergo an intensive two-hour training session under former national coach Rajko Toroman.

The players:

Light Team

Francis Abarcar (San Beda)

John Boo (La Salle-Zobel)

Kim Cinco (UPIS)

JJ Alejandro (Mapua)

Daryl Nazareno (San Beda)

Ian Carlo Valdez (Mapua)

McJour Luib (Letran)

Ariel Basas Jr. (Mapua)

Kevin Baytan (CKSC)

Brian Ilarde (UST)

Ralph Tansingco (NU)

Tomas Ramos (Ateneo)

Julius Cadavis (Sacred Heart School-Cebu)

Paolo Jabines (Pilgrim Christian College-CDO)

Randolph Toriño (Southern City College-Zamboanga)

Dark Team

Thomas Torres (LSGH)

Paul Nieles (CKSC)

Jeron Teng (Xavier)

Jason Ligad (St. Jude)

Kyle Suarez (Ateneo)

Gabriel Reyes (La Salle-Zobel)

Ralph Napa (NU)

Van Adam Abatayo (San Beda)

Richie Villaruz (LSGH)

Gideon Babilonia (San Beda)

Antonio Bonsubre (San Beda)

Edric Estacio (FEU)

Janmer Gabito (St. Joseph School-Bacolod)

Paul Razel Rubin (Sun Yat Sen School-Iloilo)

Dave Wilson Yu (Sacred Heart School-Cebu)

E-mail: sid_ventura@yahoo.com. Twitter: @Sid_Ventura