Basketballers to test skill at ABC

JAKARTA (JP): Indonesian basketball players being groomed for the Southeast Asian (SEA) Games will face an arduous test at the 8th Asian Basketball Confederation (ABC) Champions Cup here from July 18 to July 25. Indonesian semi-professional club champion Aspac will compete against nine top basketball clubs from the Philippines, Japan, China, Malaysia, Iran, Singapore, Hong Kong, Korea and Uzbejkistan.

Aspac will line up six of its players and another six from other clubs who are preparing for October's SEA Games here.

The six Aspac players are Rinaldo, Victor Roring, Suko Daryono, Felix Bendatu, Cokorda Rei and Tri Adnyana Adi Loka.

An organizing committee official, Harsuki, said the annual inter-club championships allowed competing teams to field two foreign players.

"Indonesia has not yet found foreign players to back up our players for the coming event," said Harsuki, who is also an Indonesian Basketball Association official.

All countries except China have confirmed that they will include foreign players in their teams.

The club's coach, Tjetjep Firmansyah, said his twelve players would go all out in front of local spectators at the forthcoming event.

Tjetjep said Aspac's toughest rivals would be the clubs from the Philippines and Malaysia.

Aspac was fifth in last year's championships after the Philippine's Hapee Toothpaste, Japan's Isuzu Lynx, China's Guand Dong Winnerway and Malaysian club Petronas.

If the Philippines Basketball League Champions Tanduay Gold wins, it will be the third year running it has won the competition.

The competition will be aired daily by SCTV from July 18 to July 25. Hong Kong's TVB will also cover the event. (03)