Laguna-Manila, Toledo-Zamboanga in Wesley So Cup Wednesday

MANILA, Philippines – The Manila Indios Bravos look to continue their return to form when they take on the Laguna Heroes Wednesday night, July 13, in the Wesley So Cup of the Professional Chess Association of the Philippines. 

Not since last season’s inaugural Wesley So Cup have the Indios Bravos put on a good show. Manila finished with a 30-4 elimination round record (second in the North) in that tournament, a follow-up on their 23-11 in the All-Filipino tournament during PCAP’s maiden season. 

They struggled in their next two conferences, the Open Conference (fifth place) and their first sub-.500 campaign in the All-Filipino Cup of this season. 

With better balance, Manila has done much better. At this stage, they are battling to hold on to fourth spot at 18-11 with the Cagayan Kings breathing down their necks at 17-12. Holding on to that spot means avoiding Caloocan or San Juan in the first round of the playoffs.

The Indios Bravos split last Wednesday’s double-header, winning over Mindoro, 17-4, but falling to Pasig, 13.5-7.5.

Laguna likewise split their matches as they crushed Olongapo in the opener, 16-5, but were pipped by Caloocan, 12.5-8.5, in the main game. 

Another key battle in tonight’s PCAP matches involves the Zamboanga Sultans (18-11, sixth in the South) and the Toledo Trojans (20-9, fourth in the South). 

The Sultans have been quietly one of the best teams in the south since their inception.

Zamboanga finished with identical 21-13 records at the end of the elimination rounds of both last year’s All-Filipino and Wesley So Cup. They skipped last season-ender’s Open Conference but have returned this second PCAP season with a vengeance.

The Sultans went 25-9 in All-Filipino but are currently sixth in this Wesley So Cup.

Zamboanga blanked Pagadian, 21-0, but was stunned by Negros in the nightcap, 14.5-6.5. 

The Sultans’ opponent tonight is another team that for the most part, have flown under the radar. The Trojans’ first PCAP campaign saw them finish in the elimination round with a 20-14 in All-Filipino, 17-17 in Wesley So Cup, and 16-17 in the Open Conference.

In the recent All-Filipino, they finished sixth with a 20-14 record and made the playoffs for the fourth consecutive time. 

Like Zamboanga, Toledo took a win and a loss in their previous outings — a 15.5-5.5 triumph over Tacloban and a 13.5-7.5 loss to Iloilo.

Manila and Laguna battle at 7 p.m. while Zamboanga and Toledo faceoff at 8 p.m. 

The matches of PCAP’s Wesley So Cup can be viewed via streaming on the league’s Facebook page as well as on the respective teams’ FB pages.