Nine selected from Jr. NBA Philippines North Luzon Regional Selection Camp

The lucky nine who made it out of the Northern Luzon Regional Selection camp.

The second Jr. NBA Philippines Regional Selection Camp took place last March 23-24 inside the campus of Benguet State University in La Trinidad, where over a thousand young basketball players showcased their best basketball skills.

Out of that huge number, nine made the cut to the upcoming National Training Camp this coming May, based on their skill and embodiment of the core values the program stands for.

Seven boys were feted as outstanding RSC participants: thirteen year olds Laurence Christian Batongbakal of Saint Mary's University, Jushrylle Rayne de Vera of Baguio City National High School, Zak Adlee Gumaya of Berkeley School of Baguio, and Czarlo Lorenzo Salvador of Ateneo de Davao, as well as fourteen year olds Kenneth Gabriel Duca of University of Baguio Science High School, Aethan Pagio of University of Baguio, and Nathaniel Tomeldan of St. Louis University - Laboratory High School.

Two girls also made the nod in thirteen-year old Jhulliana Francesca Pagteilah of San Jose School of La Trinidad, Inc. and twelve-year old Christine Nicole Veuterez of Baguio City National High School.

These nine will have the chance to impress in the Jr. NBA National Training Camp at the Don Bosco Technical Institute in Makati, where the Jr. NBA Philippines All-Stars are going to be plucked out from. These All-Stars, which could reach as many as five boys and five girls, will have the chance to impress in the first edition of the Jr. NBA Global Championship Asia-Pacific Selection Camp, a week-long camp in June where they have the chance to measure themselves against their regional counterparts. Be outstanding there and one will have the chance to represent the region at the Jr. NBA Global Championship in August inside the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World in Orlando.

When asked about the profile of this particular RSC, Tony dela Cruz had this to say, "What I’ve noticed here in Baguio is that there are a lot of good dribblers. The kids here are very competitive, very enthusiastic. They’re working hard. The three questions I always ask the kids – Did you have fun? Did you give your best? And the last one is, do you love basketball? And it’s all, “Yes! Yes! Yes!” and I think that’s our goal here, making sure that the kids are learning basketball, they’re having fun and more importantly they are giving their best."

There are three more Regional Selection Camps remaining for interested participants: Dumaguete on March 30-31, Butuan on April 13-14, and Metro Manila on April 27-28. For more details, you can check out www.jrnba.asia/philippines.

The Jr. NBA Philippines 2019 is presented by Alaska, with official partners AXA, Gatorade, Globe, Panasonic, Rexona, and Vivo. ABS-CBN S+A, Basketball TV, and NBA Premium TV serve as official broadcasters.