NCAA favorites San Beda, Arellano dealing with health issues

MANILA, Philippines – While the NCAA coaches see San Beda and Arellano as the teams they are mostly concerned with heading into the league’s 89th Season, the Red Lions and the Chiefs also have issues of their own.

San Beda head coach Boyet Fernandez doesn’t expect an easy route to his team’s fourth consecutive championship and it only gets tougher with his key player David Semerad doubtful for the Red Lions’ opener against host St. Benilde on Saturday.

“He is okay right now but still his status is day-to-day,” Fernandez told INQUIRER.net Wednesday. “He had a mild concussion that happened in one of our practice game.”

The six-foot-four Filipino-Australian known for his size and physical play is expected to fill the void left by Jake Pascual, according to Fernandez who admitted that the “pressure is too high” for the team to continue its reign.

Arellano, likewise, has high expectations this year and the Chiefs will be put to a test early with one of their stars James Forrester still sidelined with a left knee injury.

Forrester, an athletic swingman who plays a big part in his team’s offense and defense, hurt his knee late in the preseason and hasn’t been able to practice with the team since.

“We’re still trying to survive without James,” said coach Koy Banal. “He is still recuperating from his meniscus. He got injured in our last elimination game in the Filoil.”

Banal added that Forrester, a six-foot-two Filipino-Canadian, is currently in Toronto with his family after taking the injury hard.

“I allowed him to visit his family just to reconnect and to have a morale boost because he’s been down after the injury. He’s really preparing hard for this season,” said Banal.

Forrester had said during his team’s loss to University of Santo Tomas weeks back that he will be ready come NCAA being that the small tear on his knee “should heal on its own” without requiring any surgery.

But with the new season just days away, Banal admitted that he is still unsure on whether Forrester will be healthy enough not to miss a game or two.

“When he arrives on Thursday he will have an appointment with Dr. Canlas. Hopefully everything will be okay.”

“But then again, more than a month na walang laro, it’s still not easy. He still has to get his bearings back. He needs to get into game shape.”