La Salle ready to play in UAAP

Even as its fate in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) hangs in the balance, La Salle is determined to rationalize the Green Archers varsity basketball program and will be ready to play this coming season.

A high-ranking school official said recently although the Archers are now coach-less, an announcement on who will call the shots for the team is expected after the UAAP Board releases its decision next week on whether or not to sanction La Salle for enlisting two players with fake high school eligibility documents.

Two candidates are now in La Salle’s short list for head coach.

Franz Pumaren resigned in the wake of the player eligibility scandal last year although he said it was his understanding that if and when he is cleared of any wrongdoing, he will be reinstated. He had two years left in his contract when he tendered his resignation in a one-on-one meeting with La Salle president Bro. Armin Luistro.

No school official could confirm if Pumaren will be reappointed in the event he is cleared by the UAAP Board. It was not certain if he is in the short list of candidates to coach the Archers. A candidate is reportedly Red Bull assistant coach Gee Abanilla, a former La Salle player.

A source said if the Board suspends La Salle, it must be on the grounds of complicity and ratified by a three-fourths vote.

In an earlier statement, Bro. Luistro said he will go all the way to the Supreme Court, if necessary, if La Salle is accused of involvement in the scam.

Since complicity is the premise for suspension, it appears La Salle will sue the UAAP Board if the decision is to suspend the school.

Because of the uncertainty of the future, La Salle’s basketball team is in limbo. Assistant coach Tonichi Yturri was recently recruited to join Derick Pumaren’s staff at Talk ‘N’ Text in the Philippine Basketball Association. The contracts of Yturri and other assistant coaches Tyrone Bautista and Jack Santiago will reportedly not be renewed when they expire in July, leaving a cloud of doubt as to a clear direction for the varsity.

Star player Ryan Arana’s departure has made things worse. Arana has accumulated 24 units of failures and is not academically qualified to reenroll at La Salle.

Another blow that struck the varsity was the loss of its chief benefactor who is a successful businessman and alumnus. The resignation of team manager Terry Capistrano was another setback. La Salle is now in the process of inviting a new management group for the Archers.

The demoralization was evident in La Salle’s 33-point loss to the University of the East (UE) on the Archers’ homecourt in the recent Home and Away League.

But a team insider said La Salle Zobel high school star Simon Atkins is definitely joining the Archers despite being courted by several schools in both the UAAP and National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). Atkins recently passed the entrance exams at La Salle.

Atkins’ high school teammates Migs de Asis, Dandoy Salvador and Martin Reyes, however, are likely to join the University of the Philippines Maroons. They played for the Zobel squad that won the UAAP juniors title this season.

Also confirmed to be ready to make his Archers debut is Serbian 6-6 forward Marko Batricevic who has completed his residency requirements. Batricevic played a year for the La Salle Green Hills high school varsity in the NCAA.

La Salle sought a one-year leave of absence from the UAAP Board for men’s basketball as a way of expressing its resolve to undertake a long overdue rationalization of the varsity sports program. But when the leave of absence was turned down, school officials said they will be prepared to play in the next basketball season.

Under UAAP rules, basketball and volleyball are mandatory sports for every school. A leave of absence only from basketball is therefore not possible.

La Salle’s rationalization program includes revisiting the school policies on recruitment, scholarships, maintaining academic standards and career counseling.

While there is no clue as to the UAAP Board’s decision, several quarters are calling for sobriety and calm. Sen. Dick Gordon of Ateneo recently said in media a suspension would be too harsh a penalty for La Salle. Others who share Gordon’s sentiments said it was La Salle who volunteered the information on the ineligible players and should not be penalized for publicly disclosing the anomaly and initiating an investigation to determine the culprits.

"Suspending La Salle would send a wrong message to other schools that may also uncover similar irregularities," said an alumnus. "Perhaps, a reasonable option is to allow La Salle to continue playing on probation."

It is not certain if UE, the next UAAP season host, will support a move to suspend La Salle because of the Archers’ drawing power. Studio 23 may even ask the UAAP Board for a discount in paying its fee for the telecast rights in case La Salle is suspended.

A source said the two La Salle-Ateneo basketball games in the regular season generate enough ticket sales to pay for the expenses of the entire league.