LADIES and gentlemen, whether you know it or not, we’re in the middle of a sports whirligig. So many sports interests and events vying for our attention this second half of April. What’s a sports fan to do?
It seems the heavens have conspired to heap all of the sports action at this time of year, in this particular stretch of time when the love for sports competes with the heat of the summer sun.
Look around. The bases are full. From today till the end of April, sports events grab at sports fans from all directions. Every day of the remaining April days, you’ll have your hands full juggling your schedule or deciding which sport to train your sights on.
It’s definitely not a bad thing. But it can make your calendar go out of whack. So to make your decision-making and scheduling a bit more organized, here’s a sports calendar that you can use as guide.
- Men’s and women’s volleyball, University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP)
We’re now in the final stretch—the Final Four—of this roller coaster-like competition. The University of Santo Tomas (UST) and Far Eastern University (FEU) men’s teams went to tow Wednesday afternoon at the Filoil Flying V Sports Centre, and whoever won that match will face the National University Bulldogs at 12 noon on Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The women, meanwhile, go at it starting Saturday 4 p.m. at the Araneta Coliseum. The De La Salle Lady Spikers go up against the surging UST Tigresses at 4 p.m. And on Sunday the top-seeded Ateneo Lady Eagles face the ferocious Far Eastern University Lady Tamaraws at the Mall of Asia Arena at 4 p.m.
If the Lady Spikers and the Lady Eagles win, they will move on to dispute the women’s volleyball title between them on April 29. If their challengers win, they’ll have to beat either the Green or the Blue (who are twice-to-beat) one more time to get to the finals.
The outcome of these Final Four competitions are being avidly watched. Will La Salle and Ateneo do a repeat of last year’s volleyball finals? Will La Salle retake the crown, or will Ateneo get sweet revenge? Still, we can’t erase UST and FEU from the finals picture just yet.
- One: Kings of Destiny title defense of Eduard Folayang
Eduard Folayang of Baguio’s storied mixed martial arts (MMA) group, Team Lakay, is now considered to be the biggest and most signifnicant Filipino MMA fighter after he upset legendary foe Shinya Aoki of Japan in Singapore last November. He is defending his world title for the first time in Manila against Malaysia’s top contender, the fast and wily Ev Ting. The main event will be supported by a super packed undercard. Nine Filipino MMA fighters will see action in electrifying bouits. Besides Folayang, there will be Fil-Aussie Natalie Gonzales Hills vs. what they call the meanest Filipina walking the streets of Manila, Gina “Conviction” Iniong; Filipino Rene Catalan vs. compatriot Jeremy Miado; Danny Kingad of Team Lakay vs. Muhammad Aiman of Malaysia; Mr. Showman Eugene Toquero vs. Stefer Rahardian of Indonesia; Kevin Belingon of Team Lakay vs. Toni Tauru of Finland; Honorio Banario of Team Lakay vs. Jaroslav Jartim of the Czech Republic. Non-Filipino fighters will be Michelle Nicolini of Brazil vs. Irina Masepa of Russia; Chan Heng of Cambodia vs Xie Bin of China and Christian Lee of Singapore vs. Wan Hassan of Malysia.
ONE: Kings of Destiny is going to be the biggest mixed martial arts card in the country’s history, said ONE Vice President for Public Relations and Communications Loren Mack. “This is ONE Championship’s 10th event on Philippine soil and we have prepared the very best match lineup for the delight of our Filipino audience and the rest of the world. I just cannot begin to say how massive of a main event this will be. In addition, a handful of compelling bouts between Asia’s top superstars are set to take place inside the ONE Championship cage on fight night. Fans will not want to miss all the action that goes down in Manila, as we are already gearing up for an absolutely electrifying evening of world-class mixed martial arts.”
- National Basketball Association (NBA) Playoffs
Then there are the NBA Playoffs going on all the way till May 16. The big question is: Will the Cleveland Cavaliers of the East meet up again with the Golden State Warriors of the West for the third straight season? Or will there be new teams to spoil their broth.
Trust the process, Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers says. Ball day after ball day, the Bucks, the Raptors, the Celtics, the Bulls, the Jazz, the Wizards, the Hawks, the Trailblazers, the Warriors, the Spurs, the Grizzlies, the Rockets, the Thunder, the Clippers, the Jazz, the Cavaliers and the Pacers will go at it for three rounds until, finally, only two teams are left standing. The NBA Finals of the 2016-2017 season begins on June 1.
- Premier Volleyball League
The PVL starts its Reinforced Conference for both the men’s and women’s divisions starting April 30 at the Filoil Flying V Centre in San Juan. The country’s longest-running commercial volleyball will have three tournaments for the season—Reinforced, Open and Collegiate—both in the men’s and women’s divisions. Two-time women’s champion Pocari Sweat will try to defend their crown against the Creamline Cool Smashers (featuring Alyssa Valdez), BaliPure and Hapee Toothpaste.The men’s division will have a a six-team field. The tournament format is a double-round elimination for women’s and single round for men’s, while the semis and finals are best-of-three affairs. Playdates are every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
- The Philippine Basketball Association’s Commissioner’s Cup
Finally, there’s the PBA every Wednesday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Will Rain or Shine retain its crown? Will Meralco sustain its good beginnings all the way to June? Will San Miguel gather steam? Will Ginebra pull off a surprise?
C’mon now. Are you ready for these?