A perennial gold-medal winner, the Philippine men’s basketball team to the Burma (Myanmar) Southeast Asian Games will be a mix of the Gilas cadet players and collegiate stars from the UAAP and the NCAA.
With the Gilas Pilipinas squad now unavailable, the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas formed the next best combination after the country’s SEA Games task force required the federation to submit the names of its players tomorrow at the latest.
SBP executive director Sonny Barrios did not take calls but a reliable source said that cadet members Greg Slaughter, RR Garcia, Garvo Lanete, Jake Pascual, Ronald Pascual, Kevin Alas and Fil-Am Matt Ganuelas would comprise the core of the team that will be handled by top coaching candidate Nash Racela.
The source also said that Far Eastern U’s Terrence Romeo, National U’s Bobby Ray Parks, Ateneo’s Kiefer Ravena and Chris Newsome, La Salle’s Arnold Van Opstal and Kevin Ferrer of University of Santo Tomas are also being considered from the UAAP.
The NCAA hopefuls are Letran’s Raymond Almazan, Kevin Racal, Rey Nambatac and Mark Cruz, Perpetual Help’s Juneric Baloria, San Beda’s Baser Amer, and Ian Sangalang.