The National Basketball Inter-High gets going 13 October in Pampanga with 256 teams from 32 provinces participating in the hunt for the country's best high school team.

The top prize of P1 million goes to the best team in the event that will be open to players who are 14 to 19 years old.

Basketball star Arwind Santos, a proud son of Pampanga, will serve as commissioner of the league with Jams Sports, which is under Jamsap Entertainment Corporation, organizing the cagefest that hopes to discover toptnotch talent not just from the big cities and towns but from the countryside as well.

"We are hoping the NBCIH can help young athletes to fulfill or jumpstart their dreams of earning college scholarships while pursuing their passion for the game," said Jamsap CEO Jojo Flores in the press luncheon yesterday at the Don Bosco Academy Auditorium in Mabalacat, Pampanga.

Santos feels the staging of the tournament in a few days is very timely.

"It's more fitting because Gilas Pilipinas just won the gold medal in the Asian Games. It's the first time in 61 years and that's very inspiring for the young players," Santos said.

"We're hoping to inspire our young players to play the right way. We need to teach them to win every game and avoid game-fixing," he added.

The eight participating private high school teams in Pampanga will be coming from Sta. Cruz Academy-Lubao, St. Augustine Institute, St. Mary's Academy, Guagua National College, St. Vincent Academy, Pampanga Colleges, Don Bosco Academy and Holy Angels University, and will be battling it out at the Bren Z. Guiao Sports & Convention Center in the City of San Fernando starting at 2 pm this Friday.

After Pampanga, three days of knockout elimination games each will also be taking place in 15 other areas in Luzon, eight each in the Visayas and Mindanao — the National Capital Region, Bulacan, Nueva Ecija, Cagayan Valley, Isabela, Ilocos region, Pangasinan, Rizal, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Quezon, Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Albay, Cebu, Bohol, Leyte, Negros Oriental, Iloilo, Bacolod, Capiz, Aklan, Cotabato, Cagayan de Oro, Butuan, Surigao, Zamboanga, Davao City, Iligan and Misamis.