Spurned UST elevates protest to UAAP board

Noting that the major complaints were “judgment calls,” UAAP commissioner Ato Badolato junked yesterday the game protest of University of Santo Tomas following a narrow loss to Ateneo last Saturday.

The Tigers had cited two technical lapses—a goal-tending call on UST center Karim Abdul and the noncall on Ateneo coach Norman Black’s oncourt outburst—in the last seven seconds of the game won by the Blue Eagles, 68-66.

“[The protest] was turned down as it involved judgment calls,” said Badolato.

But league secretary treasurer Junel Baculi said yesterday that UST had already informed the UAAP Board that it would file an appeal.

UST coach Pido Jarencio said the decision not to call a technical foul on Black—who stormed inside the court to confront the referees—shouldn’t have been dismissed as a judgment call.

“It’s a technical rule, it’s not a judgment call,” said Jarencio. “It’s a league rule that once you cross the line, you get a technical.”

Jarencio said that had Black been assessed with the violation, the Tigers should have been awarded with a technical free throw with seven seconds left.

“It was a game-changer,” said Jarencio. “We’re complaining not because we lost but because a technical rule wasn’t followed. We abide by the rules.”

Jarencio said he’s not asking for a decision similar to the contentious game between National University and Far Eastern University, which the UAAP Board had decided to replay after overturning Badolato’s decision to count what would have been the game-winning basket of FEU’s RR Garcia.

UST (9-4), FEU (9-4), NU (8-5) and La Salle (8-5) are locked in a tight race for the last three semifinal berths.

Meanwhile, the league slapped a game ban on FEU assistant coach Ronald Magtulis for an off-court altercation with the father of Ateneo’s Nico Salva.