Twelve is the final count of teams that will wage war in the 2020 PBA D-League Aspirants’ Cup, which will start on February 13.
NCAA champion Letran and UAAP runner-up University of Santo Tomas spearhead the 12-team contingent for the first conference, in what is shaping up to be another wild race to the finish.
The Knights return to their name as Wangs Basketball-Letran, while the Growling Tigers will be the UST Builders Warehouse. Both are currently the early contenders for the crown.
Only Marinerong Pilipino — which settled for a bridesmaid finish in the Foundation Cup last season — will be the club team for this tourney, with 11 school-based teams joining the fray.
This is the maiden participation of EcoOil-DLSU and Mapua in the PBA D-League; on the other hand, mainstays Centro Escolar University and AMA Online Education are set for their returns.
Rounding out the participants are San Sebastian, Far Eastern University, Diliman College, Technological Institute of the Philippines, and Enderun Colleges.
All 12 teams will have the chance to load up their rosters with the 2020 PBA D-League Draft set on Monday at the PBA Office in Libis.
Fil-Am forward Jamie Malonzo of La Salle is eyed as the top selection for AMA, as the Titans will be picking at no. 1 for the fourth straight year.
Its past selections include Jeron Teng (2017), Owen Graham (2018), and Joshua Munzon (2019).
