Games Today
(The Arena, San Juan City)
12 noon – SSCR vs Lyceum (Srs.)
2 p.m. – JRU vs EAC (Srs.)
4 p.m. – CSB vs Letran (Srs.)
NCAA ManCom upholds commish decision.
The NCAA yesterday cracked the whip on three Letran players and one from San Beda for their involvement in the melee that happened in their last 92nd NCAA basketball tournament game at The Arena in San Juan City Friday.
Management Committee chair Jose Mari Lacson of San Beda said the league board upheld commissioner Andy Jao’s recommendation suspending Letran’s Jerrick Balanza, Chris Dela Peña and Marvin Sario and San Beda’s Antonio Bonsubre for one game.
“The suspension will be served,” said Lacson.
The bench-clearing incident was triggered by the offensive foul called on Letran’s Bong Quinto for elbowing San Beda’s Jomari Presbitero with seven seconds left in the game eventually won by the Lions, 83-71.
Balanza then joined in by elbowing Presbitero in the face and was called a flagrant foul, which was later upgraded to a disqualifying foul leading to the one-game ban.
“Balanza, during deadball, hit the face of Presbitero. Sario and Dela Peña entered the court. They did not do anything but obviously it didn’t look well and could exacerbate the situation and the tension,” said Jao.
Balanza, a starter, and the seldom-used Dela Peña and Sario will thus miss Letran’s next game against winless St. Benilde at 4 p.m. today while Bonsubre will sit out in his team’s next outing versus Mapua on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Jose Rizal aims to stretch its amazing run to five and leap to fourth place as it clashes with Emilio Aguinaldo at 2 p.m.
After opening the season with a 3-5 (win-loss) mark, the Bombers went on a four-game streak capped by a 68-58 win over the Lyceum of the Phl U Pirates Friday to jump into a share of No. 4 with Cardinals with a 7-5 record apiece.
Jose Rizal could jump to solo No. 4 with another win.
Like Jose Rizal, San Sebastian also tries to keep its streak going against LPU in their 12 noon showdown.
The Stags won three straight over Perpetual Help, San Beda and Mapua after losing nine straight to improve to 4-9 while keeping their Final Four hopes afloat.