“East Asia Super League – The Terrific 12” Star Players Express Excitement About Games Ahead “Our plan is to win the championship…” – Liaoning Flying Leopards’ guard, Lance Stephenson

[HONG KONG SAR – September 9] – The world will soon witness a battle royale when top club teams from China, Japan, South Korea and the Philippines face off in The Terrific 12 from September 17-22 at Macao’s Tap Seac Multi-Sport Pavilion. The Terrific 12 is filled to the brim with All-Star and national team talent from the best teams across East Asia, each of whom are championship contenders in their respective leagues.

Teams are leaving nothing to chance and have assembled their best rosters, including national team players and foreign imports. “I can’t wait to play in The Terrific 12 with my new teammates. I’m excited to play in such a great tournament this early in the season. It should really help us unite as a team and help me acclimate to this new style of play more easily,” said Liaoning Flying Leopards’ new star guard, Lance Stephenson.

Lance Stephenson is one of many former NBA players who will join top teams as a foreign import player in The Terrific 12. After signing with the Leopards earlier this offseason, Lance is ready for his debut with the club and to bring The Terrific 12 trophy to Liaoning. He also added, “Our plan is to win the championship, so that momentum will help us as a club heading into the regular season.”

The best clubs and players go up against their international champion counterparts which has players chomping at the bit. The Filipino star from TNT KaTropa known as “The Blur”, Jayson Castro, will go head to head with Lance Stephenson specified, “I’m going to show them what speed really looks like. They’ll never see me coming. We’re going to show these other teams how the PBA does things.”

The Terrific 12 presents an opportunity to showcase respective leagues and players to basketball fans in other geographies. International sensation from Utsunomiya Brex, Makoto Hiejima, mentioned “Although the Japanese teams are getting stronger, there's a need to experience more games against top opponents through EASL. We will energize not only Asia, but also the world via the games!”

Each club will clash with new challengers they’ve never faced before. The diverse opponents galvanize player development and improve club performance. The Super 8 Finals champion and leader of the Chiba Jets, Ryumo Ono, stated “I am so excited to enjoy and participate in the games of The Terrific 12, because it’s totally different from our league. Each team is very sophisticated and just as strong as any team we've ever gone up against. I cannot wait!.”

The Terrific 12 features key positional matchups and players are eager to find out how they’ll fare. Shenzhen big man, Li Muhao, stated “I really look forward to going up against Filipino big man, June Mar Fajardo. He’s a legendary player, but I don’t think he knows what he’s getting himself into.” San Miguel Beermen’s big man responded, “We’ve got a pretty tough group. We’ll be up against some strong big men, especially the guys from Shenzhen. But, we've seen it all in terms of competition and will be relying on our team effort and championship experience to carry us through.”

The Zhejiang Guangsha Lions return to Macao led by star guard, Sun Minghui. It’s championship or nothing for this team as Sun noted “This is my third year participating in an EASL event and I’m not going home empty handed.” Shen Zijie of the Shenzhen Aviators also returns to EASL and is eager to compete, “We’re ready to prove that we deserve to be here and showcase what the CBA brings to the table.”

Last year’s champion, The Ryukyu Golden Kings, return to defend their title. However, this time around, everyone wants their shot at the champs. San Miguel Beermen’s “Golden Boy” Terrence Romeo stated “I really feel like I'm on my game and the experience with San Miguel enhanced my skills and confidence. Ryuichi Kishimoto is good so it will be an interesting matchup individually and a team basis.”

KCC Egis All-star, Lee Junghyun, stated “The best way to become an elite club is through competition. The Terrific 12 provides that opportunity and the ability for the KBL to showcase its clubs and star talent.” The games are sure to provide an action-packed week of basketball featuring the best club to club competition East Asia has to offer.

ESPN5, YouTube Live to Air SMB, TNT and Blackwater games in Macao’s Terrific 12 September 17-22

When San Miguel Beer, TNT Katropa and Blackwater Elite compete against other top pro teams from Japan, China and Korea in the East Asia Super League’s Terrific 12 this September, Pinoy basketball fans can cheer them on via broadcast and online platforms in the comfort of their own homes.

ESPN5 and ESPN YouTube Live will bring the action of this FIBA-recognized premier tournament live from Macao’s Tap Seac Multi-Sport Pavilion from September 17 to 22 on primetime. This best-of-the-best Asian basketball competition – now making waves in Asian basketball -- will also be covered by 22 networks on major global broadcast and streaming networks.

The three year-old East Asia Super League was born in Macao in 2017 with just eight teams participating in “Super 8”. In 2018 the country was represented for the first time by a PBA D-League selection called the iECO Green Warriors in a 12-team competition which renamed the tournament as “Terrific 12”. Growing bigger by the year, the much awaited toe-to-toe of the top ball clubs in the region has now succeeded at luring top-calibre PBA teams into its orbit.

The three PBA squads will compete in a tournament against four Japanese, three Chinese and two Korean ball clubs: Liaoning Flying Leopards, Shenzhen Aviators, and Zhejiang Guangsha Lions from China; Chiba Jets,Niigata Albirex, Ryukyu Golden Kings and Utsunomiya Brex from Japan; and Jeonju KCC Egis and Seoul SK Knights from Korea.

The ball clubs will be grouped into four brackets with the top team from each group advancing to the semi-finals scheduled on September 21. The finals will be played on September 22 with the champion going home with a USD 150,000 prize. The runner-up will receive USD 100,000 while second runner-up gets USD 50,000.

Fans may also tune into live streams of press conferences, including the Tip-Off press conference (local time 12:00 noon on 17^th September) and the Final Four press conference (local time 3:30pm on 20^th September) on the various digital platforms to learn more about the competition and the stars of the show.

For more in-depth, exclusive and behind-the-scenes information about East Asia Super League and THE TERRIFIC 12, please follow the following official website and social media pages:

·      Official website: www.eastasiasuperleague.com

·      Facebook: www.facebook.com/eastasiasuperleague/

·      Instagram: www.instagram.com/eastasiasuperleague/

·      Twitter: www.twitter.com/EASLofficial

For ticket details please visit www.macauticket.com.

JR. NBA ASIA PACIFIC BOYS TEAM MAKES HISTORY IN JR. NBA GLOBAL CHAMPIONSHIP

MANILA, PHILIPPINES, Aug. 13, 2019 – The Jr. NBA Asia Pacific Boys Team became the first international team to beat a U.S. team in the Jr. NBA Global Championship at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World near Orlando, Florida.  Australian guard Donte Nance scored the game-winning basket against the U.S. South Boys Team for a 61-59 overtime win to finish a successful campaign for Asia Pacific.

Filipino center Henjz Gabriel “Kobe” Demisana tallied 8 points and 7 rebounds, while point guard Lionel Matthew Rubico contributed 4 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 5 steals in the victory.  Through five games, Demisana averaged 6.3 points and 6 rebounds while Rubico tallied 4 points, 3 boards, 2 assists, and 2 steals. 

In spite of an injury that prevented participation in the single elimination game against Africa, Roy Sebastian Reyes averaged 3.2 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.2 steals in four games. 

In addition, the Asia Pacific Girls Team bowed out to U.S. Midwest Girls Team in their final game, which saw Filipina guard Dianne Camille Nolasco lead the team with 6 assists and 3 steals.  Nolasco finished the tournament with averages of 6.6 points, 4 assists and 1.8 steals in five games.

“It was challenging to have players coming from different countries, especially because of the language barrier,” said Jr. NBA Asia Pacific Girls Team Coach Tony dela Cruz.  “The way these guys came together to play was amazing and to be the first team to beat a U.S. team was really special.”

The U.S. Central Girls Team and the U.S. West Boys Team took home the gold at the end of the six-day tournament.  NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, three-time NBA Champion and Jr. NBA Global Championship Ambassador Dwyane Wade, and New Orleans Pelicans Vice President of Basketball Operations/Team Development and former WNBA All-Star Swin Cash presented the winning teams with trophies in postgame ceremonies.

The global youth basketball tournament took place from August 6-11 and brought together 32 of the top 13 and 14-year old boys and girls teams from around the world.  This is the second consecutive staging of the Jr. NBA Global Championship and the first to feature an Asia Pacific Team.  During the weeklong event, the teams participated in activities designed to reinforce the Jr. NBA’s core values.  The tournament also provided the young athletes with development opportunities and memorable experiences, including health and wellness programs, leadership development, and NBA Cares community service projects.

For more information on the Jr. NBA Global Championship, visit the official website at jrnbagc.nba.com and on Facebookand Instagram.

About the NBA

The NBA is a global sports and media business built around four professional sports leagues: the National Basketball Association, the Women’s National Basketball Association, the NBA G League and the NBA 2K League.  The NBA has established a major international presence with games and programming in 215 countries and territories in 50 languages, and merchandise for sale in more than 100,000 stores in 100 countries on six continents.  NBA rosters at the start of the 2018-19 season featured 108 international players from 42 countries and territories.  NBA Digital’s assets include NBA TV, NBA.com, the NBA App and NBA League Pass.  The NBA has created one of the largest social media communities in the world, with 1.6 billion likes and followers globally across all league, team, and player platforms.  Through NBA Cares, the league addresses important social issues by working with internationally recognized youth-serving organizations that support education, youth and family development, and health-related causes.