WATCH: One basket determines winner of Friendship Cup

A mere basket separated OGF Cochrane from first-runner-up HMU in the Anne Reyes Friendship Basketball Cup championship game on June 25.

For six weeks, teams comprised of players 35 and over competed to determine the matchups on Championship Sunday.

PAG-ASA Grocery Store & Remittance Centre was second runner-up and the Pampanga Dragons/ TRI-STAR Home Renos were third.

OGF lead 20-13 at the half, but HMU kept nibbling away at it, tying it up 28-28 with 1:48 remaining in the third. It was once again tied 36-36 with 2:51 remaining. OGF grabbed a three-point lead, and despite applying plenty of pressure, HMU was limited to a single point on a free throw, ending the game 39-37.

Henry Salcdo of the OGF team, says it's a tournament Filipino basketball players 35 and over look forward to playing, and the competition is always stiff. This year was no exemption.

"The other team is so good. They have a lot of good players, especially the point guards and the guards. They shoot well."

Players come from across the region to play in Sunday Hoops, and it was no different for this tournament. There was plenty of Cochrane talent on the court, but they also come from Banff, Airdrie, Calgary, and points in between to enjoy the competition and fellowship offered here.

The tournament was named in honour of long-time supporter Anne Reyes.

"It's really an honour for me that they put it under my name," says Reyes. "I've been supporting Filipino basketball since 2017."

She intends to continue to be involved.

"They're very nice people and they're doing this event, not just for fun, but for a charity that I am supporting back in the Philippines."