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Friday, March 10, 2006
Ex-Slashers coach to recruit Negrense players
By Henry C. Villalva
THE former coach of the defunct Negros Slashers will be coming to Bacolod to witness the opening salvo of the 2006 NBA Mayor's Cup Summer Open Basketball Tournament.
The event, which is organized by the Negros Basketball Association (NBA), is scheduled to open on April 2 at the Po Hang Gym of the Bacolod Tay Tung High School.
NBA president Oscar "Dodong" Bascon told SUN.STAR Bacolod yesterday that coach Robert Sison will also scout for players to join his team in the Philippine Basketball League (PBL) in Manila.
"This is another opportunity for our players to show their wares and get a chance to play in the PBL under coach Robert," Bascon said.
Sison, who went on to coach the Montaña Jewelers squad into a championship plum in the PBL following the foldup of the Metropolitan Basketball Association (MBA) was reported to have tendered his resignation last week as head coach of the squad effective October this year upon the expiration of his existing contract.
It was not clear whether Sison would be coaching another PBL team or joining the coaching staff of another Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) squad after he likewise ended his short-lived ties with PBA team Air 21 where he served as one of the assistant coaches last season.
"Whatever his plans are I'm sure coach Robert will always look at Negros and Bacolod City as a source of upcoming and fresh basketball talents," Bascon opined.
Another former Negros Slashers mentor, Jun Noel, is also reported to be eyeing prospective players for the PBL from Bacolod.
Noel, who is currently an assistant coach for Hapee Toothpaste in the country's premier amateur league, recruited former West Negros College Mustangs guard Mark Moreño to the Hapee Toothpaste ranks last year.
Moreño went on to become one of the top draft picks for 2005 in the PBL and is currently a starter in the Hapee Toothpaste lineup.
Meanwhile, reports emanating from Manila have it that several top collegiate standouts from at least three Bacolod colleges and universities are currently being pursued aggressively by several commercial and school squads in Manila.
The reports say this is the result of Bacolod players' exposure to recent national tournaments where they were scouted by Manila talent scouts
particularly during the recent Private Schools and Athletic Association (PRISAA) national Games in Dagupan City, Pangasinan as well as during the 60th National Students Basketball Championships in Legazpi City.
Western Visayas PRISAA bannered by standouts from West Negros College and University of Negros Occidental-Recoletos finished third in the Pangasinan series while the WNC Mustangs pocketed the national inter-collegiate championship in Legazpi City.(HCV)
(March 10, 2006 issue)
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