Jarin says current NU team could go down as ‘one of strongest teams’ he’s coached

Jamike Jarin has had many talented players go under his wing during his tenures with San Beda in the NCAA and National University in the UAAP.

Red Lions like Baser Amer, Art Dela Cruz, Ola Adeogun all played under Jarin albeit for just one year, ending in a runner-up finish against Colegio de San Juan de Letran in the NCAA 2015 title.

All those names etched their marks in collegiate basketball lore but Jarin said his current crop of Bulldogs could very well surpass what his former Red Lions have done.

Jarin said that the Sane Beda teams he handled in 2015 and 2016 are still his best squads in the collegiate level but the likes of Dave Ildefonso and John Lloyd Clemente could ultimately catch up with his Red Lions.

“That San Beda team is full of talent and most of them are in the PBA,” said Jarin of Amer and Dela Cruz Sunday at Smart Araneta Coliseum after NU’s 79-74 loss to Far Eastern University.

“Come back in four years and I might say this is one of the strongest or the best teams, but you’re looking ahead.”

Jarin’s current Bulldogs do have a dismal 3-10 record in the UAAP Season 81 basketball tournament while his San Beda teams reached the finals twice and won the title once.

It was with Robert Bolick, Arnaud Noah, Javee Mocon, and Davon Potts that Jarin got his only NCAA title.

Jarin added that Clemente and Ildefonso are only at the start of their rise and he’s sure that the two rookies would end up as the future leaders of the NU basketball program.

“We’re excited not just for these players but also for the entire program,” said Jarin, whose team still has to play one more game this season against University of the East. “Dave and JLC, they’re just part of the NU program.”

“And yes the foundation is set with the help of a lot of people.”