The East Asia Super League (EASL) Final Four receives a Philippine touch as Rhenz Abando suits up for Anyang Jung Kwan Jang in the three-day event at the Hoops Dome in Lapu Lapu, Cebu.
The 25-year-old former Gilas Pilipinas player already saw action for the Korean Basketball League (KBL) side last Sunday against Goyang Sono.
This was his first game back, three months after his harrowing fall in which he sustained multiple injuries.
Abando finished with 17 points, four rebounds, four steals, and three assists in a 92-87 win.
Unfortunately, another Filipino, Juan Gomez de Liano, won’t be playing for the other KBL team, Seoul SK Knights.
The guard from the University of the Philippines underwent season-ending surgery on his finger.
The Red Boosters and the Knights are set to clash in the ‘March Madness’ version of the EASL, with Philippine Airlines, Dusit Thani Mactan Cebu Resort, and TikTok as official partners, and Anta, McDonald’s, and Spalding as product partners.
The two Korean sides will battle each other at 5 p.m. this Friday, followed by the collision between the undefeated Chiba Jets of B. League and the Jeremy Lin-bannered New Taipei Kings of the P. League+ at 8:00 PM.
Winners of the two semi-final pairings will meet in the Finals on Sunday, where the winner takes home a cool $1 million prize money.
Except for the Jets, all three teams already arrived in the Queen City of the South on Wednesday.
Philippine Ambassador to Korea Maria Theresa B. Dizon-De Vega attended Abando’s game along with embassy officials and members of the local Filipino community to send off the former NCAA Rookie-MVP from Letran and the rest of the Red Boosters in their EASL title bid.
