Teammates part ways in UAAP

MANILA, Philippines - Two teammates on the FIBA-Asia U-18 3x3 champion squad are headed for opposite directions when they graduate from high school to play in the UAAP men’s senior basketball tournament next season.

Arvin Tolentino and Prince Rivero saw action for the Philippines with Thirdy Ravena and Kobe Paras at the FIBA-Asia U-18 3x3 tournament in Bangkok last year. The high school stars lost their first game to Qatar, 17-14, then won six in a row, beating China, 22-18 in the semifinals and India, 21-19, in the finals to clinch the crown.

Now, they’re going separate ways. Tolentino is moving from San Beda to join Ateneo as a freshman while Rivero is leaving La Salle Greenhills to enrol at De La Salle University. Ravena and Tolentino will reunite at Ateneo. Paras, who has a year left of UAAP junior eligibility, has been offered an athletic scholarship at Cathedral High School in Los Angeles and is trying out for the varsity. If Paras decides to return home, his father Benjie said he will play for the Archers in the UAAP seniors.

The 6-5 Tolentino led the San Beda Red Cubs to multiple NCAA junior championships and jumps to the UAAP with a winning tradition. Rivero, a 6-4 power forward, battled Tolentino in the NCAA juniors but despite compiling monster numbers, could never bring the Greenies to the throne. Rivero, whose father Paolo is the strength and conditioning coach of the Barako Bull PBA team, will reinforce the Archers’ imposing frontline. The next UAAP basketball tournament begins in July. Tolentino and Rivero were heavily recruited by different schools as they’re widely considered blue-chippers.

Both Ateneo and La Salle are bringing in a slew of rookies. Eagles coach Bo Perasol confirmed the other day the arrival of Tolentino, Ravena, 6-4 John Apacible, 6-1 Clint Doliguez, 5-8 Renzo Subido and 5-7 Hubert Cani. The six rookies come with impressive credentials. Ravena is the UAAP juniors MVP and will now play with older brother Kiefer at Ateneo. Cani is the UAAP Finals MVP. Doliguez and Apacible powered Hope Christian to the Tiong Lian title last year, Subido was the UAAP juniors leading scorer with La Salle Zobel. And Tolentino, a tested winner, provides versatility in multiple positions. Another recruit is 6-5 Ponso Gotladera, a former San Beda high school center who left La Salle to transfer to Ateneo.

A possibility to suit up is former FEU high school standout Jerie (Koko) Pingoy who is serving a mandatory two-year residence at Ateneo for leaving the Tamaraws without clearance. If the UAAP Board has a change of heart, it may reduce Pingoy’s residency requirement to just a year which he will have served when the next season starts. The UAAP Board has come under fire from several quarters for violating the human right of a high school graduate to choose his college voluntarily.

La Salle coach Juno Sauler will welcome newcomers Terence Mustre, Abu Tratter and Julian Sargent. Mustre’s father Mike is a PBA veteran. The 5-10 guard was born in Manila and moved to London with his parents six years ago. Mustre is the MVP of the U-19 All-England league with Harris Academy of Essex. Tratter, a 6-6 center, averaged 8.2 points in 17 games as a senior at St. Francis High School in Mountain View, California, in 2011-12. A half-Filipino, Tratter was born in Laguna. The 6-3 Sargent is also half-Filipino and averaged 21.9 points, 6.0 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 3.7 steals in 46 games over two seasons at Cortez High School in Phoenix. Mustre, Tratter and Sargent sat out last season to serve the compulsory residence at La Salle to gain eligibility to play in the UAAP this year.

La Salle has lost only L.A. Revilla from the 13-man championship roster this season. Revilla is now playing for Globalport in the PBA. The Archers are bringing back 6-4 Yutien Andrada who suffered an ACL injury during the Filoil Flying V tournament last April and missed the entire UAAP campaign. Andrada, Almond Vosotros and Norbert Torres are playing out their UAAP eligibility this coming season.

The Eagles lost Juami Tiongson, J.P. Erram, Ryan Buenafe and Frank Golla but recruited strongly to stock up for the future. Two imports in residence are 6-10 Chibueze Ikeh of Cameroon and 6-10 Tochukwu Ewenike of Nigeria. Another import-in-waiting is 7-1 Senegal teenager Karbala Gueye, now enrolled at Reedley High School.

Perasol shored up his coaching staff by bringing over Ronnie Magsanoc, Xavy Nunag and Ricky Dandan. Magsanoc, a PBA Hall of Famer, took San Beda to the NCAA seniors title two seasons back in his first stint as head coach. “Ronnie and Xavy are set to join me,” said Perasol. “They are actually attending our practices already. Ricky is still with my staff. We’ve got a very young team without a legitimate big man.”

With the rule on imports still not certain to be retained, UAAP schools are building their inventory. NU will unveil 6-6 Alfred Aroga to team with comebacking Emanuel Mbe this season. Highly-touted Cameroon forward Mustapha Arafat is making his UAAP debut with UE alongside the hulking Charles Mammie. UST’s imports-in-residence are 6-6 William Afoukwah of Ghana and 6-10 Christopher Okworonku of Nigeria. FEU is priming 6-10 Prince Orizu of Cameroon while UP has 6-5 John Ahanda of Pennsylvania. Cameroon’s Benoit Mbala has another year of residence left at La Salle.