UAAP suspends three referees for ‘subpar’ officiating in basketball games

MANILA, Philippines — The UAAP slapped three of its referees with a three-week suspension due to what the league described as “subpar” officiating in the UAAP Season 86 basketball games.

The league on Thursday said the said referees, whose names have been withheld by the UAAP, were sanctioned because of “subpar grades received from the Referee Game Report Card, which serves as a quantitative evaluation of their performance during UAAP basketball games.”

“We take the responsibility of providing competent and professional referees to the league very seriously, and it is essential that all officials maintain the highest level of integrity and accuracy. The suspension is intended to give the referees the opportunity to reflect on their actions and to improve their performance,” Season 86 Basketball Commissioner Xavier Nunag said in a statement.

“Please be assured that we will make every effort to find suitable replacements during the suspension and we will continue to monitor the performance of all our referees with the help of concrete data to ensure the highest standards are maintained,” he added.

However, a letter from the Commissioner’s Office to the Board of Managing Directors, where the names of the suspended referees and the games they officiated were revealed, has been circulating online.

The letter read that the three referees officiated the University of the Philippines-Far Eastern University game, La Salle vs Adamson, and Ateneo vs University of the East on Wednesday at Mall of Asia Arena.

The officiating in the Ateneo-UE game was questioned on social media after the Blue Eagles made 25 of their 34 free throws, while the Red Warriors only shot 1-of-4 from the line.

The letter also read that the three suspended referees “will not be officiating during the playoffs, final four, and finals games.”