MANILA -- Bitter rivals Colegio de San Juan de Letran and San Beda College will go at it early when the 92nd NCAA basketball season kicks off on June 25 at the MOA Arena in Pasay City.

Newly installed Management Committee chairman Jose Mari Lacson of San Beda made the announcement on Wednesday at the official turnover rights from last season's host Mapua Institute of Technology to this year's host San Beda at the Pearl Hotel in Manila.

It will be a blockbuster opener as the 4 p.m. Letran-San Beda showdown, a rematch of last season's finals, will be spiced up by the 2 p.m. duel between Jose Rizal University and Mapua, who made it to last year's Final Four.

"It's going to be an exciting opening," Lacson assured.

READ: San Beda sweeps NCAA general championship

It can be recalled that Letran scored an upset when it beat San Beda in last season's finals and clinched its first championship in more than a decade.

Lacson said they tapped multi-awarded director Roxanne Lapus to direct the opening ceremony set at 1 p.m.

Elimination round games will be played every Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday mostly at The Arena in San Juan, while the Final Four and the Finals are all scheduled at the MOA Arena.

San Beda rector-president and NCAA president Fr. Aloysius Ma. Maranon, OSB, said the school is ready for its hosting duties.

"We're excited to host the NCAA as always," he said.

Last year's league president, Mapua's Dr. Reynaldo Vea, said the NCAA will try to continue to make progress.

"As we continue to improve, we will not rest on making the NCAA be better," he said.

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