The UAAP Men’s Basketball Tournament is already in full swing and all teams have been intensifying their game to take it to the next level, which fans have been able to witness every Wednesdays, Saturdays, and Sundays on ABS-CBN S+A, LIGA, and iWant.
 
While the spotlight is mostly on the athletes, there is another group of students in the league that have proven to be also worthy of admiration and emulation with their passions and advocacies outside the court.
 
From an eco warrior, to a mental health advocate and a financial literacy champion, our UAAP courtside reporters are as diverse as they can get when it comes to their interests.  Let’s get to know them more as they share the ways they go #AllForMore when they are not covering the UAAP games.
 

1.    Baileys Acot, reporting for the National University Bulldogs

 
Baileys is the son of basketball coach Beaujing Acot, who made waves with his Benedectine International School Tigersharks in the late ‘90s to early 2000s. NU’s courtside reporter is also an active athlete himself and is a member of the University of the Santo Tomas Growling Tigers track and field men’s team. Aside from that, Baileys helps in his father’s Pinoy Youth Dreamers as a coach and staff. “It’s an outreach program for the youth for all kinds of sports all over the Philippines and all over the world,” he shared.
 
2.)   Jaime Ascalon, reporting for University of the East Red Warriors
 
Jaime comes from a basketball family, being the nephew of coaches Ryan and Allan Gregorio, so it comes as no surprise that reporting about basketball is second nature for him. Outside of reporting for the UE Red Warriors, Jaime also advocates a better and cleaner environment. “I really care for the environment and I believe the little things can make a difference,” he said. As a member of the UP EcoSoc, Jaime also arranges cleanup drives in beaches, tree planting activities, and climate change seminars to ensure that the future generation still have a world to live in. Now, that is an Eco Warrior. Or Eco Red Warrior?
 

3.    Yani Mayo, reporting for University of the Philippines-Diliman Fighting Maroons

 
Yani Mayo is no stranger to talking in front of crowds as she moonlights as host and radio DJ whenever she’s not buried deep in school work or busy with her school orgs, which are all related to media. Yani’s driving force is telling stories with a purpose and she believes she can do that as the courtside reporter for the UP Fighting Maroons, who are trying to end a title drought in the UAAP basketball wars. “That’s what I want to bring this UAAP season, purposeful storytelling that’s fun and storytelling that’s interesting,” she shared.
 

4.    Rain Matienzo, reporting for Adamson University Soaring Falcons

 
Like Yani, Rain is also a broadcasting major in UP Diliman. Aside from her duties to the Adamson Soaring Falcons, Rain joined the a volunteer broadcasting program called Voice of the Youth, a program that tackles issues which young Filipinos should be aware of so they can be more involved. Originally, she joined the world of broadcasting so that she can be of influence to her peers in high school, which is focused on science. “There are not much opportunities for them to explore communications so I hope that by putting myself out there they can open up themselves up more to communication and media and hopefully find their place in this industry,” she shared.
 

5.    Mariz Domingo, reporting for Far Eastern University Tamaraws

 
Mariz hails from Ilocos and was even a beauty queen in her city of Laoag, where she spent time with kids and the youth to promote education. As a tourism student in FEU, Maris advocates for deaf tourism owing to her father having a hearing impairment. As she reports for the Tamaraws this season, it is also her goal to empower people with disabilities to go beyond their boundaries. “Kahit disabled ka man, you can do a lot of things only if you are passionate about it and only if you are determined to step beyond what you can do,” she said.
 

6.    Makyla Chavez, reporting for University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers

 
If there’s one thing Makyla is super passionate about, it is having a mic to hold and a program to host. The proud Thomasian courtside reporter hosts a weekly sports program in UST powered by the school’s Tiger Media Network where she gets to talk about anything sports-related for UST, and get the athletes closer to their fellow students in campus. “My favorite has to be the part where I get to inspire others by being the voice of Thomasian athletes by sharing their beautiful stories,” said Makyla, who is a proud sports advocate.  
 

7.    Frannie Reyes, reporting for Ateneo De Manila University Blue Eagles

 
Outside courtside reporting, Frannie is active in her home org in the Ateneo, where they advocate for financial literacy and impact investing for everyone. “It’s something that I also believe in order for this country especially to have stable and sustainable economic growth,” she explained.
 

8.    Aiyana Perlas, reporting for De La Salle University Green Archers

 
DLSU courtside reporter Aiyana Perlas is also into singing and hosting, and was even a finalist for the Myx VJ Search last 2018.  She considers mental health to be one of her bigger advocacies and passions outside the hardcourt. The Psychology major wants everyone to know that they cannot deal with their mental health issues alone and should feel free to talk about it to help ease the burden. “It’s okay not to be okay. You just have to find the right people to talk about it,” she said.
 
 
Watch these eight awesome courtside reporters talk about their “More” in a short video on the ABS-CBN PR Facebook page and YouTube channel. Catch them in action as the UAAP basketball competition continues on ABS-CBN S+A, S+A HD, LIGA, LIGA HD and via livestreaming on sports.abs-cbn.com and iWant. Follow @ABSCBNSports on Twitter and Facebook to see their vlogs and other UAAP news and features. For updates, follow @ABSCBNPR on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram or visit www.abscbnpr.com.