Call them San Miguel Alab Pilipinas from now on
After Tanduay pulled out as the team’s major sponsor due to team management issues, ASEAN Basketball League club team Alab Pilipinas has found a new partner in another giant company in San Miguel Corporation.
Team owner Charlie Dy himself announced the partnership Thursday morning through Instagram.
“Alab Pilipinas welcomes our new partners,” he said.
“We will now be called San Miguel Alab Pilipinas.”
“Ganyan kaming mga taga-SMC, para sa mga Pinoy handa kaming saluhin. Iba ang may pinag samahan!,” added SMC Sports Director Alfrancis Chua.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
SMC isn’t new to dipping their hands into the ABL’s waters, having fielded the San Miguel Beermen franchise years ago that won the 2013 crown. That team had the likes of Asi Taulava, Leo Avenido, and a young June Mar Fajardo.
The sophomore club team initially had talks with the MVP group, and an MVP-Alab partnership was deemed inevitable due to the connection of Alab’s head coach Jimmy Alapag to the said conglomerate.
San Miguel’s arrival though couldn’t be timelier, especially now that Alab has been winning games and their home games have been packed to the roof. Alab is currently at the fourth spot of the team standings with a 7-4 card.
Alab’s recent win came on Wednesday night, when they took down league giants Chong Son Kung Fu Basketball 92-91 in extra period infront of a soldout crowd at the Santa Rosa Multi-Purpose Complex in Laguna.
