[h2]Ateneo-DLSU tickets sold out in 2 hours[/h2]
Bringas shines
By Jasmine W. Payo
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 00:45:00 08/04/2009
Filed Under:
Basketball,
UniversityAthletics Association of the Philippines (UAAP)
THE FIRST BATCH OF TICKETS FOR THE first Ateneo-La Salle showdown in the UAAP this season sold out in two hours at the Araneta Coliseum yesterday.
The Blue Eagles and the Green Archers renew their storied rivalry at 5 p.m. on Sunday at the Big Dome.The Far Eastern University Tamaraws and the Universityof the East Warriors will tangle earlier at 12 noon.
Tickets for each game are sold separately.
Basketball tournament director Mark Molina said the league will no longer issue standing-room-only (SRO) tickets for the blockbuster August 9 match.
"The tickets sold will be exactly for the 15,000 capacity of Araneta," said Molina.
The four schools will start selling their alloted choice tickets to their alumni and supporters starting today up to Saturday, with the remaininggeneral-admission tickets up for sale before the game this Sunday.
Officials of TicketNet, the ticketing network of the Araneta Coliseum, told the Inquirer that it sold out 570 tickets yesterday by 11:15 a.m. after openingthe ticket booths at 9 a.m.
"Instead of four schools dividing 15,000 (tickets), we now have two schools dividing 15,000," said Molina of the league's decision to issueseparate tickets on the same playdate.
"We believe if there are more tickets given to both Ateneo and La Salle, it might not eliminate, but it will definitely, decrease scalping."
But just like last season, bootleg tickets for the duel were already peddled online. Patron tickets originally priced at P300 are now being auctioned off ata starting price of P19,000.
Meanwhile, the UAAP Press Corps picked La Salle rookie Arvie Bringas as the Accel-FilOil Player of the Week for his breakout game against University ofSanto Tomas last Sunday.
Bringas, who played a key role in San Sebastian's NCAA juniors title run last year, fueled the Green Archers' amazing comeback from a 17-pointdeficit before eking out a 101-92 double overtime triumph over the Tigers.
Bringas, who averaged only 3.8 points in his first five outings, finished with 21 to become the first rookie in three seasons to score over 20 points in agame.