G-Day has arrived, and That's G

The photo you see above is the new visual identity of Gatorade. Gatorade Philippines launched it on Monday night at the rechristened Gatorade Hoops Center in Mandaluyong City (naming rights, ala the SMART-Araneta Coliseum).

We remember the old logo of Gatorade being like this:

Old School

The new logo denotes a bold representation of the heart, hustle and the soul of modern-day athletes looking for a winning edge in their quest for athletic glory.

Alongside this transition from the old to the new has been the use of social media to get the word out on the change. You're probably kind of wondering then why you see the #ThatsG and the #WinFromWithin hashtags recently, especially from your favorite athletes.

Some of those athletes that you may be following on the different social media platforms are actually Gatorade Ambassadors, which is subdivided into the G Rising Stars, which is designated for the student-athletes under its umbrella, and the G Elite, which is designated for the professionals under its umbrella.

In addition to the ambassadors, Gatorade has also been a partner with the different professional teams and schools with supplying their needs, as well as the different sporting events, like the IronMan and Asian Triathlon Championships. There are reports already that they are in the works to be part of the upcoming NBA Preseason game between the Pacers and Rockets.

In spite of the change of the visual identity, Gatorade will still remain to be faithful in delivering the scientifically-proven hydration and performance benefits which it was built on since its inception in 1967. In fact, Gatorade Philippines' Senior Product Manager Mikey Rosales noted that it is the complete sports fuel for the current generation of athletes.

The launch of the new logo was conducted in front of an excited audience that included athletes from different sporting disciplines, coaches and media. Attendees got a chance to see to test themselves with the different zones and challenges, from getting their vertical leap and power test, to checking their skills in endurance, football and hoops. It also was the chance for Gatorade to introduce the G Rising Stars and G Elite.

There were also prizes given away to lucky winners. Two were blessed enough to win an all-expenses paid trip to New Orleans for the 2014 All-Star Game.

The Boston Marathon

There was a notion of shock when I heard about the blast that took place on the Boston Marathon. Stunning. Shocking. Jaw-dropping, even. I haven't even watched the clips yet and it's freaking me out.

Repercussions have been felt far and wide in the sports world. Security protocol has been reviewed for all sports events in different facilities. The London Marathon will go on as scheduled, though.

The Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League, who were to host the Senators that night, postponed their match.

The NBA has decided to cancel the Celtics-Pacers match altogether, a first in the history of the NBA since going on the 82-game schedule. It is important to note that there is no seeding implications with both teams, as Celtics are fated to face the Knicks, while the Pacers are locked in as the 3rd seed.

The Boston Red Sox, as always on Patriot Day, schedule their game on this day earlier than normal, so the explosion took place after the conclusion of their 3-2 win over Tampa. They were on the way to the airport, as they were to fly to Cleveland that night for their series with former Red Sox manager Terry Francona and the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field.

Hope those perpetrated this dastardly act will be dealt with, accordingly.

The #MasterGameFace All-Star Basketball Challenge

The FilOil Flying V Premier Cup has tied up with the number one men's skin care brand in the country, Master, to come up with a preseason All-Star Game entitled, "The Master Game Face All-Star Challenge."

To be held on June 8 at the FilOil Flying V Arena in San Juan, it will bring together 36 collegiate stars from the 18 schools participating in the Premier Cup. Group A, consisting of San Beda, University of Perpetual Help-Dalta System, National University, Far Eastern University, University of the Philippines, Arellano, College of Saint Benilde, Jose Rizal University, and Adamson, will have former San Beda star Borgie Hermida as its head coach, while Group B, which has Ateneo de Manila, La Salle, University of Santo Tomas, University of the East, San Sebastian College-Recoletos, Colegio de San Juan de Letran, Lyceum, Emilio Aguinaldo College, and Southwestern University, will have Ateneo alum Chris Tiu as its head coach. Both Borgie and Chris are the latest endorsers of Master.

Fans have the chance to select their top five college basketball players for Team Borgie and Team Chris via Facebook. Just go to Master Philippines page and click on the Game Face Application. Those who would guess the top 5 correctly will have the chance to win ringside tickets for the Master Game Face All-Star Challenge. Chris and Borgie will name their reserves by May 25, once the fans have finalized their vote for the starting five, which they can start doing on April 17.

Both have said that the depth of talent in the collegiate ranks illustrates that fans have a lot to choose from.

Tickets for the Master Game Face Challenge, which will take place after the FilOil Cheerleading competition, cost PhP 100 for the Upper box area, while Lower Box tickets cost PhP 200. Also, purchasing 1 Master 100g Facial Wash and 1 Master 135ml Cleanser in participating supermarkets starting May 1, 2013 will also get you an Upper Box ticket.

Interpreting the Context of AkTV and IBC ending their Blocktime Agreement

On Spin, Snow Badua noted that MVP made the announcement that its blocktime agreement with IBC-13 (through AkTV, which is under the arm of Mediaquest Holdings, Inc) will not be renewed when it ends in May.

Snow's source noted that AkTV would then move its coverage to TV5.

When this broke, Interaksyon posted this almost one hour later. Within that, they included their business article (as a link) detailing MVP's announcement of the end of their blocktime agreement, which was posted at 5:45pm, a couple of hours before the Spin piece was posted.

The business post denoted that the block-timing agreement was not profiting as much as what they expected, so they decided not to renew it when it ends in May. It also clearly made it known that any commitments that AkTV is in connection with will be maintained.

Upcoming Premier Cup Schedule

2013 FILOIL FLYING V PRE-SEASON PREMIER CUP
Game Schedule (Updated schedule as of April 16, 2013)
		Light		Dark
13-Apr	1pm	Opening Ceremonies
Opening day	2pm	San Beda	vs	National U	Srs A
Saturday	4pm	UST	vs	DLSU	Srs B
	6pm	ADMU	vs	SWU	Srs B
17-Apr	9am	UST	vs	CSJL	Jrs A
Wednesday	10:45pm	UST	vs	FEU	Wms A
	12:45nn	JRU	vs	SBC	Srs A
	2:30pm	SWU	vs	UE	Srs B
	4:15pm	SSCR	vs	ADMU	Srs B
19-Apr	9am	National U	vs	UP	Jrs A
Friday	10:45am	AdU	vs	UP	Wms A
	12:45nn	UPHSD	vs	AU	Srs A
	2:30pm	SBC	vs	UP	Srs A
	4:15pm	ADMU	vs	EAC	Srs B
20-Apr	8:30am	ADMU	vs	UPHSD	Jrs B
Saturday	10:15am	ADMU	vs	CEU	Wms B
	12nn	FEU	vs	AdU	Srs A
	2pm	DLSU	vs	SWU	Srs B
	4pm	UST	vs	ADMU	Srs B
22-Apr	9am	FEU	vs	Mapua/Malayan	Jrs B
Monday	10:45am	National U	vs	LPU	Wms B
	12:45nn	SWU	vs	SSCR	Srs B
	2:30pm	ADMU	vs	CSJL	Srs B
	4:15pm	AU	vs	UP	Srs A
24-Apr	9am	CSJL	vs	National U	Jrs A
Wednesday	10:45 AM	DLS-Z	vs	Mapua/Malayan	Jrs B
	12:45nn	LPU	vs	SWU	Srs B
	2:30pm	National U	vs	CSB	Srs A
	4:15pm	UE	vs	ADMU	Srs B
26-Apr	9am	UP	vs	UST	Jrs A
Friday	10:45am	FEU	vs	CSB	Wms A
	12:45nn	SWU	vs	CSJL	Srs B
	2:30pm	SSCR	vs	DLSU	Srs B
	4:15pm	ADMU	vs	LPU	Srs B
27-Apr	8:30am	UPHSD	vs	FEU	Jrs B
Saturday	10:15am	UP	vs	UST	Wms A
	12nn	CSB	vs	AU	Srs A
	2pm	UPHSD	vs	FEU	Srs A
	4pm	National U	vs	JRU	Srs A
1-May	9am	SBC	vs	LSGH	Jrs A
Wednesday	10:45am	LPU	vs	DLSU	Wms B
	12:45nn	EAC	vs	SWU	Srs B
	2:30pm	SSCR	vs	LPU	Srs B
	4:15pm	FEU	vs	National U	Srs A
3-May	9am	SSCR	vs	DLS-Z	Jrs B
Friday	10:45am	National U	vs	ADMU	Wms B
	12:45nn	AU	vs	AdU	Srs A
	2:30pm	UE	vs	EAC	Srs B
	4:15pm	CSJL	vs	SSCR	Srs B
4-May	8:30am	Mapua/Malayan	vs	ADMU	Jrs B
Saturday	10:15am	DLSU	vs	CEU	Wms B
	12nn	CSB	vs	JRU	Srs A
	2pm	SWU	vs	UST	Srs B
	4pm	National U	vs	UPHSD	Srs A
6-May	9am	LSGH	vs	CSJL	Jrs A
Monday	10:45am	SSCR	vs	UPHSD	Jrs B
	12:45nn	UST	vs	AdU	Wms A
	2:30pm	AdU	vs	National U	Srs A
	4:15pm	EAC	vs	CSJL	Srs B
8-May	9am	UST	vs	SBC	Jrs A
Wednesday	10:45am	UP	vs	CSB	Wms A
	12:45nn	UP	vs	CSB	Srs A
	2:30pm	AU	vs	FEU	Srs A
	4:15pm	UPHSD	vs	JRU	Srs A
10-May	9am	National U	vs	LSGH	Jrs A
Friday	10:45am	CSJL	vs	UP	Jrs A
	12:45nn	LPU	vs	CEU	Wms B
	2:30pm	LPU	vs	DLSU	Srs B
	4:15pm	SSCR	vs	UST	Srs B
11-May	8:30am	FEU	vs	SSCR	Jrs B
Saturday	10:15am	UST	vs	CSB	Wms A
	12nn	UST	vs	CSJL	Srs B
	2pm	National U	vs	AU	Srs A
	4pm	FEU	vs	UP	Srs A
15-May	9am	DLS-Z	vs	UPHSD	Jrs B
Wednesday	10:45am	CEU	vs	National U	Wms B
	12:45nn	JRU	vs	AdU	Srs A
	2:30pm	CSB	vs	UPHSD	Srs A
	4:15pm	UE	vs	CSJL	Srs B
17-May	9am	SSCR	vs	Mapua/Malayan	Jrs B
Friday	10:45am	ADMU	vs	FEU	Jrs. B
	12:45nn	CSJL	vs	LPU	Srs B
	2:30pm	EAC	vs	DLSU	Srs B
	4:15pm	UP	vs	National U	Srs A
18-May	8:30am	SBC	vs	National U	Jrs A
Saturday	10:15am	ADMU	vs	LPU	Wms B
	12nn	AdU	vs	CSB	Srs A
	2pm	UST	vs	UE	Srs B
	4pm	SBC	vs	FEU	Srs A
22-May	9am	UPHSD	vs	Mapua/Malayan	Jrs B
Wednesday	10:45am	SSCR	vs	ADMU	Jrs B
	12:45nn	SBC	vs	AU	Srs A
	2:30pm	UE	vs	LPU	Srs B
	4:15pm	EAC	vs	SSCR	Srs B
24-May	9am	National U	vs	UST	Jrs A
Friday	10:45am	DLSU	vs	National U	Wms B
	12:45nn	UST	vs	LPU	Srs B
	2:30pm	AdU	vs	UP	Srs A
	4:15pm	FEU	vs	CSB	Srs A
25-May	8:30am	UP	vs	SBC	Jrs A
Saturday	10:15am	FEU	vs	DLS-Z	Jrs B
	12nn	JRU	vs	AU	Srs A
	2pm	UPHSD	vs	SBC	Srs A
	4pm	DLSU	vs	UE	Srs B
27-May	8:30am	LSGH	vs	UP	Jrs A
Monday	11:15am	CSB	vs	AdU	Wms A
	12pm	CSB	vs	SBC	Srs A
	1:45pm	LPU	vs	EAC	Srs B
	3:30pm	CSJL	vs	DLSU	Srs B
29-May	9am	UST	vs	LSGH	Jrs A
Wednesday	10:45am	FEU	vs	UP	Wms A
	12:45nn	SSCR	vs	UE	Srs B
	2:30pm	UPHSD	vs	AdU	Srs A
	4:15pm	JRU	vs	UP	Srs A
31-May	9am	SBC	vs	CSJL	Jrs A
Friday	10:45am	FEU	vs	AdU	Wms A
	12:45nn	JRU	vs	FEU	Srs A
	2:30pm	EAC	vs	UST	Srs B
	4:15pm	UP	vs	UPHSD	Srs A
1-Jun	9am	DLS-Z	vs	ADMU	Jrs B
Saturday	11pm	DLSU	vs	ADMU	Wms B
	2pm	AdU	vs	SBC	Srs A
	4pm	ADMU	vs	DLSU	Srs B
3-Jun	10:45am	A1	vs	B2	Jrs SF1
Monday	12:45nn	B1	vs	A2	Jrs SF2
	2:30pm	B2	vs	A3	Srs QF1
	4:15pm	A2	vs	B3	Srs QF2
5-Jun	10:45am	A1	vs	B2	WmsSF1
Wednesday	12:45nn	B1	vs	A2	WmsSF2
	2:30pm	B1	vs	A4	Srs QF3
	4:15pm	A1	vs	B4	Srs QF4
7-Jun	10:15am	Battle for third Juniors Division
Friday	12nn	Battle for third Women's Division
	2pm	Seniors Division Semi Finals 1
	4pm	Seniors Division Semi Finals 2
8-Jun	2pm	Cheerleading Competition
Saturday	4pm	All Star Game
12-Jun	10:15am	Juniors Division Finals
Wednesday	12nn	Women's Division Finals
	2pm	Seniors Battle for Third
	4pm	Seniors Division Finals
* Highlighted in red are televised.

Tripleheader to open 7th FilOil Flying Premier Cup

A triple-header beckons for basketball fans this weekend, with the seventh season of the FilOil Flying V Hanes Premier Cup opening on April 13 at the FilOil Flying V Arena in San Juan.

Defending champions National University will face the reigning NCAA champions San Beda to kick off the action at 2pm. UAAP losing finalist University of Santo Tomas faces La Salle at 4pm, while closing out the tripleheader at 6pm is guest team Southwestern University facing the reigning UAAP champions Ateneo.

NU won't have Jul-Ashri Ignacio, Ajeet Singh and Henri Betayene (who will miss the upcoming UAAP season due to a knee injury), but will have newcomers JJ Alejandro and Alred Arogo to fill the gaps. The Bulldogs of Coach E will still have the two-time MVP Rayray Parks to lead them.

For San Beda, they will have a new coach, as Ronnie Magsanoc was replaced by Boyet Fernandez, who handles the NLEX Road Warriors in the PBA D-League. The Red Lions will have the Semerad twins back after missing last season due to a failed attempt to transfer to Ateneo. The two will attempt to provide experience and depth with the graduation of Jake Pascual, Anjo Caram and Melo Lim.

The 2nd game will feature a Green Archer team seeking to reclaim recent glory, with the acquisition of St. John's Institute of Bacolod standout Kib Montalbo joining forces with the likes of Jeron Teng and Norbert Torres. Meanwhile, the Growling Tigers virtually will retain the same core that went toe-to-toe against Ateneo in the UAAP Finals.

The last match in the tripleheader will feature an Ateneo team preparing for the virtually unprecedented attempt to secure their sixth straight UAAP crown. Losing Norman Black and a set core of veterans in Greg Slaughter, Justin Chua, Nico Salva, Oping Sumalinog and Tonino Gonzaga, it will be up to Ryan Buenafe, Kiefer Ravena, Juami Tiongson and new head coach Bo Perasol to keep that title run going. They will face the CESAFI champions, whom they previously have faced in the 2012 PCCL Final Four. The Cobras won't have Ben Mbala, as the big man has since transferred to La Salle, but they will have a 6'10" center Siewe Armel to fill in those big shoes.

The Premier Cup will have a juniors division, with twelve teams (Group A: LSGH, Letran, NU, UST, San Beda, UP; Group B: Arellano, Ateneo, DLSZ, FEU-FERN, Mapua, San Sebastian) taking part. They open play on April 17, with UST against Letran.

Another new wrinkle in the Premier Cup will be the debut of the women's division. Ten teams (Adamson, Ateneo, CEU, CSB, La Salle, FEU, Lyceum, NU, UP and UST) will participate in the inaugural edition, which will also kick off with UST against FEU on April 17.

New additions to spice up 7th FilOil Flying V Premier Cup

The 7th staging of the Filoil Flying V Premier Cup will have a new participant this year, as Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. champions Southwestern University will be joining the tournament as a guest team alongside the NCAA and UAAP teams that normally participate in this competition.

The Cobras made it to the Final Four of the Philippine Collegiate Champions League late last year, thanks mainly to the efforts of Ben Mbala. With the 6'7" center from Cameroon transferring to La Salle during the break, it is up to the 6'10" Siewe Armel to fill in those big shoes.

In addition to a new entrant in SWU, the cyclical nature of collegiate basketball ensures that new faces are produced yearly, who are tasked to replace the graduating players from the previous season. The Premier Cup was established to be a testbed for the different NCAA and UAAP schools to allow these new faces to jell before said leagues start their respective seasons.

These new faces include JJ Alejandro and Alfred Arogo for the reigning Premier Cup champions, National University, Kib Montalbo for La Salle, Joseph "Tata" Marata for the University of the Philippines, Rey Nambatac of Letran, Axel Iñigo of Adamson and Christopher Newsome for Ateneo.


For some schools like Far Eastern University and Letran, it is an opportunity for fans to get to see their new coaches at work, with Nash Racela and Caloy Garcia taking the reins of the Tamaraws and the Knights, respectively. In Caloy's case, it'll be familiar waters, as he previously held the reins for College of Saint Benilde during the mid-00s.

This will also be the scenario for the reigning champions of their respective leagues, as both Ateneo and San Beda will have new tacticians taking over the incumbent dynasties. Bo Perasol will have the unenviable task of replacing Norman Black at Loyola Heights, while Boyet Fernandez seeks to continue what Ronnie Magsanoc was able to accomplish in the lone year that he had at Mendiola.

On the other hand, making his return to San Sebastian is Topex Robinson, who left the program abruptly during the 88th season of the NCAA due to some issues with team management.

The 18 teams are divided into two groups, with Bracket A containing San Beda, University of Perpetual Help-Dalta System, National University, Far Eastern University, University of the Philippines, Arellano, College of Saint Benilde, Jose Rizal University, and Adamson. Bracket B, on the other hand, will have Ateneo de Manila, La Salle, University of Santo Tomas, University of the East, San Sebastian College-Recoletos, Colegio de San Juan de Letran, Lyceum, Emilio Aguinaldo College, and Southwestern University.

The tournament is set to begin on April 13 at the Filoil Flying Arena in San Juan, with the quarterfinals to take place on June 3 and the finals on June 12.