The longest‑running collegiate basketball league in the Philippines is set to begin a new chapter as NCAA Season 102 officially opens on September 13 at the Mall of Asia Arena.
Along with the anticipation of a new season, members of the NCAA Board also provided updates on the basketball tournament format, as well as news regarding the media broadcast of the games.
Another Change in the NCAA Basketball Format
Last season, Jose Rizal University representative Paul Supan and Emilio Aguinaldo College representative Dr. Lorenzo Lorenzo announced that the group play format was implemented because “there was a need for innovation.”
Now, another change will be introduced, as Chairman Attorney Jonas Cabochan announced that the fourth‑seeded team will have a twice‑to‑beat advantage during the Play‑In Tournament.
Just like last season, the 10 teams will still be divided into two groups: Group A and Group B. The Elimination Round will consist of three stages. In the first stage, teams will face the other squads within their respective groups, while the second stage will see them go up against teams from the opposing group.
The final stage of the Elimination Round will then have teams face the universities from their own groups once again.
With the top three universities from each group advancing based on their records after the group stage, the fourth seed and fifth seed will still need to go through the Play‑In Tournament. However, the fourth seed will now have a twice‑to‑beat advantage, unlike last season when neither team had such an edge.
“This change hopes to increase the level of competition at any level. Hopefully, with this change in the format, the excitement would still be there,” explained Chairman Attorney Jonas Cabochan.
Free Streaming Services for NCAA Games
With the NCAA agreeing to a two‑season deal with Cignal as its official broadcast partner, Cignal Vice President of Sports Business Development Jose Miguel S. Vea provided an update on where fans can watch the upcoming NCAA basketball games.
All games will be livestreamed for free on the One Sports YouTube channel, with some matches also broadcast live on television through ONE Sports and RPTV. However, only the second game, scheduled for 5:00 p.m., will be broadcast live on television. Meanwhile, the first game, which starts at 3:00 p.m., will be livestreamed on YouTube.
The games will also be livestreamed through Cignal’s app, CignalPlay. In addition, an upcoming television channel exclusive to Cignal users called NCAA NXT will be launched on Channel 264.
Vea revealed that Cignal has agreed to livestream three tournaments during Season 102: Men’s Basketball, Women’s Volleyball, and the Cheerleading Competition.
With both basketball and volleyball being free to watch for NCAA fans, excitement is building around how these changes to the tournament format, along with the arrival of a new broadcast partner, will kickstart a new era for the NCAA.
