Nueva Ecija rules out Juan Gomez de Liano in President's Cup Grand Final

Juan Gomez de Liano only played one leg in the President's Cup so far.

Short-term loss for a long-term gain.

Nueva Ecija has made the decision to rule out Juan Gomez de Liano from the upcoming Grand Final of the 2020 Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3x3 President's Cup powered by TM.

Juan is still recovering from the right ankle sprain he suffered during the second leg of the tournament, and has yet to return to the 3x3 scene since.

He was hoping to be ready in time for the Grand Final, the final leg of the tournament that has a PhP 1M windfall for the winner. However, the Rice Vanguards physical therapist indicated that the twenty-year-old has yet to fully recover from his injury.

According to team manager Jai Reyes, "There’s so much to risk about his future. Although this as a major tournament for us and we really want to win, it’s unfair to him if pilitin namin siya lumaro."

He adds, "Gusto niyang lumaro, but the assessment is hindi pa niya kaya na full speed. We don't want to risk everything."

Although Gomez de Liano has been sidelined, he remains ever present for the Rice Vanguards. Reyes remarked, "For the past legs na 'di siya nakakalaro, he's always there to cheer us. He'll still be there tomorrow."

As third seeds in the Grand Final on Friday, Nueva Ecija will field Reyes, Gab Banal, Mac Sabelina, and Tonino Gonzaga as their quartet.

President's Cup resumes with second leg

The Nueva Ecija Rice Vanguards

Fresh from a podium finish at the first leg of the Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3x3 President's Cup powered by TM last Wednesday, Nueva Ecija is set to tweak their quartet for the second leg on Friday.

The Rice Vanguards needed to make an adjustment after Juan Gomez de Liano suffered an ankle injury during pool play against Bacolod. He was forced to sit out the knockout rounds, which saw the team make it all the way through the semifinals.

Nueva Ecija then decided to shelve the 20-year old for the upcoming second leg.

The former stalwart of the University of the Philippines averaged 7.5 points in the first leg before getting injured.

Veteran guard Tonino Gonzaga has been called up to replace Juan and join Jai Reyes, Gab Banal, and Maclean Sabelina, as they are set to face off against sister team Palayan City, and Sarangani in Pool A.

First leg champions Zamboanga City seek to extend their dominance in the 3x3 scene after being placed alongside Pasig-Sta. Lucia and Petra Cement-Roxas in Pool B.

Down 17-14 with four minutes left, Joshua Munzon sparked the Family's Brand Sardines-back quartet with four points in the 7-0 run to clinch the title and the PhP 100,000 cash prize.

Butuan-Uling Roasters headline Pool C, as they aim to improve on their second place effort against Bicol-Paxful 3x3 Pro and Zamboanga Peninsula Valientes MLV.

Porac, Bacolod-Master Sardines, and Pagadian-Rocky Sports complete the cast inside the so-called "Calambubble" for Pool D.

The second leg will also feature the TM Two-Point Shootout and the TM Slam Dunk Contest, with the latter featuring the trio of Darwin Cantong, Jesus Manay, and David Carlos trying to outdo each other.

Fans can watch the games on BEAM TV Channel 31, the Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas page on Facebook, and the FIBA 3x3 YouTube account, starting at 1pm.

Juan Gomez de Liano Statement

The Gomez de Liano family alongside UP Men's Basketball management

Here is the official statement from Juan Gomez de Liano regarding his decision to commit to playing in the University of the Philippines.


It’s official: I’m going to play college basketball for the UP Maroons! First of all, I want to say thank you to the UP Management and the coaching staff for giving me this amazing opportunity. I’m very excited to get to work and begin playing with the team, including my brother Javi, so that we can continue the winning culture started by the team last year and make the UP community proud. There’s nowhere to go but UP! #UPFight