BAGO magsalpukan sa NCAA ay magsasama-sama muna sina Jonathan Manalili, Tony Ynot, at Allen Liwag sa Strong Group Athletics para sa 43rd William Jones Cup sa susunod na buwan.
Ang tatlo ay idinagdag sa Strong Group roster na pinangungunahan na nina Kiefer Ravena, Chris McCullough, Rhenz Abando, Angelo Kouame, RJ Abarrientos, Jordan Heading, Caelan Tiongson, DJ Fenner, at Tajuan Agee.
Ang nalalapit na torneo ay idaraos ilang buwan bago ang inaasahang seniors debut ni Manalili sa Colegio de San Juan de Letran sa Season 100, kung saan makakasagupa niya sina Liwag at Ynot ng De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde.
“Having Jonathan, Allen, and Tony in our team is our way of helping develop the future of Philippine basketball. We always make sure to have young players in our team to give them an early glimpse of what international basketball is like,” sabi ni SGA president Jacob Lao.
Si Manalili ay may average na 16.08 points, 6.92 assists, 4.23 rebounds, at 2.46 steals per game para sa Squires noong nakaraang season, kung saan pinangunahan niya ang Letran sa back-to-back juniors titles bukod sa pagkopo ng Finals MVP plum.
Samantala, sina Ynot at Liwag ay magbabalik sa SGA makaraang maglaro para sa koponan na nagwagi ng silver medal sa 2024 Dubai Basketball International Tournament noong Enero.
“This will not only prepare Allen, Tony, and Jonathan for the upcoming NCAA Season 100 tournament but will also help them have a bright future in basketball,” dagdag ni SGA head coach Charles Tiu.
