BAYUGAN CITY, Agusan del Sur ― It can be called the Battle of Champions between the 2018 titlist University of Santo Tomas and defending champion Adamson University in the cash-rich Mayor Kirk Asis Open Invitational Basketball Tournament 2025 here.
This, as the UST Growling Tigers and the Adamson Falcons breezed through the elimination round to face each other in the final, June 29 at 4 pm before an expected another jam-packed crowd at the Lope Asis Memorial Gymnasium.
Ironically, both UST and Adamson came from upset losses at the hands of the Letran Knights and JRU Heavy Bombers in their respective fourth games, thus creating a 2-2 triple tie among Adamson, FEU and JRU for second place.
“That’s the very reason why we love to tap the country’s premier collegiate teams here because they fight for honor without a tinge of commercialism win or lose, thus ensuring a full-blast basketball entertainment,” said tournament director Kim Lope A. Asis II.
Adamson’s plus six over FEU’s plus one and JRU’s minus seven in the tiebreaker, however, gave the ARQ Builders-backed Soaring Falcons of coach Nash Racela the right to challenge frontrunner UST/WengBurs Apartelle of coach Pido Jarencio for the P300,000 top purse and the championship trophy.
Runner-up will get P200,000.
The FEU/MAIR Construction and General Merchandise of coach Sean Chambers and the razzle-dazzle JRU/Vincare Pharma boys of coach Nani Epondulan will dispute the second runner-up prize of P150,000 with the loser out to settle for the third runner-up purse of P100,000.
JRU’s fellow newcomer Letran/Bustamante Construction of coach Allen Ricardo will settle for the consolation prize of P75,000 after missing the top-four, but not without giving a fight.
Skippered by the 19-year-old dazzling playmaker Jonathan Manalili, who skipped the first two games due to tooth extraction, the cellar-dweller Letran Knights (1-3) eventually gained the local fans’ respect and appreciation after erasing the UST's 10-point lead in the last 5 minutes to prevail, 83-79.
“The Bayugan City people love him we can’t get any of his sold out No.13 hoops apparel outside the gym,” said local journalist Jack Biantan.
“He’s obviously a star in the making we hope and pray he can avoid serious injuries and will land in the PBA someday,” Biantan said of the crowd-darling Jonathan, the youngest son of the legendary Cebu Mama’s Love head coach Norberto ‘Titing’ Manalili.
