This year’s finals for the general division of the University Basketball Association officially opened on April 27 (2022) at NPUST’s Meng Xiang Gymnasium. The competitions will be held over a five day period, with the last two days also including play-offs between the top four women’s teams. In the men’s group, twenty-four teams were assembled for the competition, and were matched up based on results from the previous year. The teams include: NYCU, NTUST, NTSU, NUTC, NKNU, NCUT, NCKU, NKUST, NTU, NTOU, UTP, CNA, HWU, STUST, DYU, OCU, AEUST, LHU, YZU, CYCU, FCU, SJU, and SCU.
NPUST President, Chang-Hsien Tai, delivered some remarks at the opening, stating: “Basketball is a very popular sport. And when we look at the support that American universities give to their school teams, their investment in the training of players, and the formation of an industry around it—it is not only admirable, but also worthy of Taiwan’s imitation. If our domestic universities can cultivate their own players to win honor for their schools and for the country, and even become professional basketball stars, I believe it will bring prosperity to Taiwan’s sports world. Although we cannot compare with the scale of the United States, the model can be followed to cultivate domestic players with potential and talent, develop our own basketball industry, and encourage more students who like basketball or other sports to move towards their dreams. I hope that through this tournament, all players will be able to demonstrate team spirit, play with enthusiasm, and feel the youthful joy of giving it their all. I wish all participating schools an outstanding performance!”
In the first event of the opening, NPUST’s home team went face to face with last year’s champion—Asia Eastern University of Science and Technology (AEUST). NPUST’s President Tai was invited to throw the opening tip-off. Following 30 elimination rounds, the finals will be broadcast on SSUTV on May 1st.
The hosting of the competition, gave students from colleges and universities around the country an opportunity to come and visit the NPUST campus. The university also set up a special student recruitment area in the gymnasium venue where it’s various departments could provide information to visitors with hopes that more students will consider applying to NPUST’s outstanding departments and colleges for future studies. The competition was also an opportunity to showcase the upgrades made to the Meng Xiang Gymnasium, which is the largest indoor stadium in Southeast Asia—and hopes are to see many more players on its courts in the years ahead.
