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MPBL targets Dec. 11 for opening of invitational tournament

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Camille B. Naredo, ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="speech" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2021/sports/11/16/20211116_kenneth.jpg"/></figure></div>MANILA, Philippines -- The Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL), now under a new operations group, will open its Invitational Tournament on December 11, with the Mall of Asia Arena as a possible venue.MPBL commissioner Kenneth Duremdes on Tuesday confirmed that 22 teams will participate in the event, which marks the league&#x27;s return to action after the 2019-20 season ended in March this year.&quot;Matagal nang gusto ng mga team owners na mag-resume tayo, pero hindi pwede. Pero this is the right time, I think,&quot; Duremdes said on the Philippine Sportswriters Association (PSA) Forum. &quot;We have 22 teams na magpa-participate. And hopefully today, ma-confirm namin &#x27;yung venue namin, which is MOA Arena, for the December 11 opening,&quot; he added.Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas has been tasked by league founder Sen. Manny Pacquiao to run the operations of the regional league.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/11/10/21/mpbl-set-to-turn-pro-seeks-fiba-accreditation">READ: MPBL set to turn pro, seeks FIBA accreditation</a></li>	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/10/25/21/mpbl-operations-to-be-handled-by-chooks-to-go">READ: MPBL operations to be handled by Chooks-to-Go</a></li></ul>For its invitational tournament, the MPBL is breaking away from its traditional home-and-away format, with teams instead following a closed circuit system that will see them travel strictly from their homes to the venue for the games.The 22 teams will be divided into four groups, and play each other in a single round-robin format, with the top two teams in each group advancing to the knockout quarterfinals.&quot;Ngayon, subukan natin &#x27;yung FIBA tournament for this invitational, FIBA-type. Four groups, parang single round robin, top two of each group, parang ganoon ang initial na meeting namin,&quot; said Duremdes. Games will be played daily, starting at 9 a.m. &quot;Parang FIBA tournament talaga siya na &#x27;pag nanalo ka, you move, and every day &#x27;yung game, Mondays to Sundays,&quot; Duremdes said.According to Duremdes, FIBA will be monitoring how they conduct the tournament, and they will also be guided by the Games and Amusements Board (GAB) as the league had earlier decided to turn professional.They are also waiting for the final guidelines from the Inter-Agency Task Force (IATF) regarding crowd attendance at the venue.Vaccination against COVID-19, however, will be mandatory for the players.&quot;Lahat ng players po, kailangan fully vaccinated. Lahat ng players, to join, kailangan fully vaccinated. And, we will follow, still, the strict health and safety protocols of the Department of Health,&quot; Duremdes said.Duremdes hopes that the brief tournament will &quot;reignite&quot; the MPBL after its topsy-turvy 2019-20 season, which was stopped for a year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The league only finished its Lakan Cup in a bubble set-up in Subic last March, with the Davao Occidental Tigers emerging as champions over the San Juan Knights.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/03/21/21/davao-occidental-rules-mpbl-lakan-cup">READ: Davao Occidental rules MPBL Lakan Cup</a></li></ul>&quot;We&#x27;re ready,&quot; Duremdes said. &quot;I hope &#x27;yung mga fans natin ay excited na rin pagdating ng opening natin. And, ito na &#x27;yung sinasabi nating i-reignite natin &#x27;yung league dahil matagal tayong nawala.&quot;

The MPBL, now under a new operations group, will open its Invitational tournament on December 11, with the Mall of Asia Arena as a possible venue.

MPBL targets Dec. 11 for opening of invitational tournament

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MPBL targets Dec. 11 for opening of invitational tournament

Camille B. Naredo,

ABS-CBN News

Published November 16, 2021 03:19 PM PHT

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basketball

Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League

MPBL

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