Pumaren vs Pumaren in UE vs DLSU

It’ll be some sort of family reunion for the Pumarens this afternoon when La Salle plays University of the East at the Araneta Coliseum.

Franz Pumaren, the veteran coach for the Green Archers, and younger brother Dindo, the rookie coach for the Warriors, will be on opposite ends of the court with their respective teams seeking important victories to close out their first-round schedules in the 67th UAAP season.

Their elder brother, Derrick, will be there, too, along with their father, Pilo, who once called the shots for UE. Derrick is now a team consultant for the Warriors and has openly played a key role in the team’s actual games, handing out instructions from behind the bench during the most critical moments.

The Pumaren ladies and the children have also made it a point to be there for La Salle and UE games.

"Well I guess they all have to stay in the middle while Dindo and I compete out there. I think UE is playing well. You cannot take them for granted because they have a lot of heart. I’m not being biased with my brother but nobody even gave them a second look at the start of the season and look where they are now," said Franz.

The Green Archers are comfortable with their 4-2 record and will come off back-to-back wins over Santo Tomas and UP.

the Philippines. The Warriors, on the other hand, are pretty even at 3-3 and will come off a painful, buzzer-beating 72-71 loss to Santo Tomas.

"I’m sure UE will be raring to come back from this kind of a loss. And they want to prove something. Unfortunately we’ll be playing them but that’s competition," added Franz, winner of four straight titles for La Salle from 1998 to 2001. "I guess the loser will just have to treat the family to dinner."