SBP seeks 3-point clarification with FIBA on brawl

MANILA, Philippines — SBP president Al Panlilio has said a letter has been sent to FIBA seeking clarification on three points in relation to the suspension of 10 players, head coach Chot Reyes and assistant coach Jong Uichico with the appurtenant fines but clarified no appeal was made on the sanctions issued in the wake of the recent brawl between the Philippines and Australia in the third window of the FIBA Asia/Pacific World Cup qualifiers.

“We had to go through the appeal process to seek clarification but strictly speaking, there was no appeal,” said Panlilio.  “The three points involved Calvin Abueva who was mentioned as starting the altercation during the warm-ups before the game, R. R. Pogoy who was cited as the instigator of the free-for-all and the lack of stadium (Philippine Arena) security.  We only want to clear the air on those points.”

Panlilio said the Australians pushed away the Filipinos during the warm-ups, Daniel Kickert triggered the brawl by planting a forearm on Pogoy’s neck in a dead-ball situation and the crowd of over 20,000 was well-behaved on the whole.  “It appears that FIBA was under the impression that 15 spectators joined in the brawl and the stadium security failed to hold them back,” he said. 

In the NBA and PBA, a free-for-all is easily sparked if the referees fail to control the physicality of the game.  Referees jump into the fray once the first sign of deliberate physical contact is made, averting an escalation.  Without the referees intervening, a physical game could turn into an explosive melee.  In the Philippines-Australia game, the three referees stepped back after Kickert jumped on Pogoy, leaving the door open for retaliation and a free-for-all.  The three referees from Oman, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon were suspended a year by FIBA.

Panlilio said there will be no reversal of the SBP’s decision to withdraw from the coming Asian Games in Jakarta.  “It was a tough and unpopular decision to make,” said Panlilio.  “But we felt the time and the chance to form an optimal team were not available.”  Panlilio said before the SBP formally advised the POC of its withdrawal, SBP chairman emeritus Manny V. Pangilinan spoke with Indonesian Asian Games Organizing Committee chairman Eric Thohir on the phone.

“I also had a chance to speak with Mr. Thohir,” said Panlilio.  “Of course, MVP and Mr. Thohir are close friends and allies.  They’re both members of the FIBA Central Board and they collaborated to submit the winning bid to co-host the 2023 FIBA World Cup.  We explained our predicament to Mr. Thohir who understood our situation.  We didn’t formally advise FIBA of our withdrawal but we’re certain it’s monitoring developments regarding our national team.”  The Philippines and Palestine have withdrawn from the basketball competition, leaving 13 countries to vie for the Asian Games gold.

Panlilio said the decision to withdraw was arrived at after a lengthy meeting among Pangilinan, POC president Ricky Vargas, SBP executive director Sonny Barrios, SBP legal counsel and FIBA legal commission member Aga Francisco, Gilas head coach Chot Reyes, NLEX coach Yeng Guiao and Rain Or Shine coach Caloy Garcia at the PLDT office in Makati last week.

“The meeting started about 6 p.m. and it was after the PBA had a Board of Governors meeting and a press conference,” said Panlilio.  “By 10:30 p.m., we released a statement on our withdrawal after informing PBA commissioner Willie Marcial, San Miguel’s Alfrancis Chua and Rain Or Shine owner Raymund Yu of the decision.  We realized the difficulty of putting up a team to represent us and didn’t want to put the PBA in a spot.”

Panlilio said he has also spoken with the Philippine delegation’s Asian Games chef de mission Richard Gomez and former POC chairman Monico Puentevella who has offered to assist in explaining the withdrawal to the Olympic Council of Asia.