La Salle rookie ineligible to play?

Three-peat champion La Salle is in danger of forfeiting all its seven won games if one of its players – Fil-Am Mark Cardona – is found to be ineligible to play this season.

This came about after the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) board asked La Salle to submit documents proving that Cardona did not violate the new eligibility rule on foreign athletes.

In reports submitted to the board yesterday, Cardona, a rookie out of Carson High School in California, allegedly violated the new rule approved just before the 64th UAAP cage season started less than two months back.

The new rule states that if an aspirant studied in a foreign school in three of the last five years, he or she is considered a foreign athlete and required to serve a two-year residency at the school he or she wants to play for.

"There were reports from the internet that Cardona might have violated the new eligibility rule on foreign athletes," said a board member who refused to be identified. "Those reports were submitted to the board and we are trying to resolve it as soon as possible."

The Board is to meet again tomorrow to discuss the Cardona issue. La Salle, which is currently atop the standing along with Ateneo De Manila on identical 7-1win-loss slates, is to submit the pertinent papers on the case on the same day.

As these developed, UAAP president and Far Eastern University team manager Anton Montinola said FEU president Edilberto De Jesus sent La Salle president Bro. Rolando Dizon a letter of apology for the behavior of some unruly school supporters in the tumultuous La Salle-FEU match last Saturday.

"We’ve apologized for some of our supporters’ unruly behavior and we accepted our defeat in good faith because FEU is concerned over the image of the UAAP," said Montinola.

Montinola also revealed that starting today, the participating schools will pick from 15 referees instead of the original 20 to improve officiating.

Asian Basketball Academy-Philippines head Chot Reyes also announced the suspension of referee Raffy Britanico for wrong foul he called against Dennis Miranda instead of Rysal Castro.