WITH the UAAP men’s basketball tournament already in full blast, UST fans will miss key players Cyrus Baguio, Melchor Latoreno, and Gilbert Lao from the Growling Tiger’s line-up.
This was after Coach Januario “Aric” Del Rosario cracked the whip on the three players, who had acquired academic deficiencies, because they opted to play in the Philippine Basketball League (PBL) rather than prioritize their studies.
In an earlier statement, Del Rosario said that he was forced to take drastic measures because they have no longer been attending UST team practices and instead trained with their PBL teams.
“Matitigas kasi ang ulo ng mga iyon. Mas pinili nilang mag-laro sa PBL kaysa mag-aral,” said a disappointed Del Rosario during the UAAP press conference sponsored by Studio 23 last July 9 at the ABS-CBN compound in Quezon city.
In an interview with the Varsitarian, Del Rosario confirmed that academic deficiency was the main reason why those players were dismissed from the team.
Del Rosario also belied a report published in the Philippine Daily Inquirer last July 17, where Lao said that he had good grades and there was no reason why he should be dropped from the team.
Lao was quoted saying in the report that the reasons Del Rosario gave were “farthest from the truth” and because of what happened, he had lost his scholarship.
“Siyempre kung anong sasabihin ng player sa reporter, iyon ang isusulat. Hindi ko na papatulan iyan dahil kung eligible siya (Lao), bakit ko siya aalisin? Napaka-sira naman ng ulo ko kung alam ko (na) kailangan ko siya (at) eligible siya, (tapos) aalisin ko siya,” Del Rosario said.
To set the real score on the dismissal case of the three erring players from the team, Del Rosario is willing to show papers, which will prove that they have indeed incurred failures.
“Gusto ni Father De Sagon, kunin lahat ng records nila tapos ipakita sa UAAP board at sa T.V. Asan iyong mga sinasabi nilang good grades? Wala nga silang mga grades,” he said.
Aside from Baguio, Latoreno, and Lao, back-up center Kenneth Co Yu Kang was also cut from the team’s roster due to the same reason.
PBL problem
For Del Rosario, players like Baguio, Lao, and Latoreno are not new. He said that even before, there were already players in his team who had divided attention because of their PBL commitments.
He complained that whenever he needed his players, their PBL teams would not allow them.
“Dati pa, iyong PBL players ko, binibigyan ko ng excuse kahit hindi sila nag-eensayo. Maski nung araw pa nina Dennis Espino, sumisipot sila two weeks before ng UAAP, kapag tapos na ang PBL. Ok lang na hindi kayo mag-eensayo dito pero kung medyo maluwag-luwag kayo, magpakita kayo,” Del Rosario said.
When asked whether he would welcome his players back, Del Rosario was quick to throw out a positive response. He said that he even helped Baguio and Co Yu Kang to enroll in the University this semester despite the administration’s disapproval.
“Welcome silang bumalik. Si Baguio at si Co Yu Kang, dapat hindi sila mag-e-enroll. Hindi na sila tatanggapin dahil bagsak nga. So, iyong parents nila, nakiusap sa amin,” Del Rosario said.
He hoped that his actions would send out a clear statement that he would never tolerate such behavior from his players. He stressed that even though they are players who contribute a lot to the University, they should prioritize their studies.
Despite the developments in the team, UST fans might still see the return of high-flying Baguio next year.
“Pumasok siya (Baguio) ngayon. (At) kapag gumanda ang grades (niya), nag-aral (siya), next year maglalaro (siya),” Del Rosario said.
Baby steps
Meanwhile, Asian Basketball Association (ABA) President Chot Reyes said that the men’s basketball tournament can now be seen in the United States through The Filipino Channel (TFC) in order to reach a wider audience.
He also said that aside from the four 10-quarter and 24 shot-clock rules, there would also be three referees officiating the games.
Though specific guidelines are yet to be decided by the UAAP board, stricter rules will be imposed on Fil-foreigners who want to play in the UAAP starting this year.
These, Reyes said, were only some of the few changes that they implemented to make the games more exciting.
“Our approach is that we are taking baby steps because these are required in order to take giant strides later on,” he said.
