Guest teams spice up race for NC plum

MANILA, Philippines - With three guest school teams allowed to vie for the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) championship, a wide-open race is expected when the country’s oldest collegiate league unwraps its 85th season later this month.

Jose Marie Lacson, chairman of the NCAA Management Committee (MANCOM), made the assessment in the weekly PSA Forum Tuesday at the Shakey’s UN Avenue branch, where he also mentioned the preparations being undertaken by this year’s host San Beda College.

The NCAA formally opens shop on June 27 at the Araneta Coliseum with the centerpiece event of basketball. Arellano University, Emilio Aguinaldo College and Angeles University Foundation are competing as guest teams, making this year’s roster a 10-team field.

“Usually when you have guest teams, they are not allowed to compete for the championship. But we want them to be competitive. So the MANCOM ruled that they too, can win the championship,” said the San Beda official.

Aside from basketball, the three schools are also required to compete in five of the league’s regular events, among them swimming, volleyball, football, track and field and cheerdance competition.

Excelling in any of these events could easily make a case for any of the three guest teams on their probable future in the league.

“A good showing will be a big boost in their respective bids for regular membership in the NCAA,” said Lacson in the public sports program sponsored by Shakey’s, Accel, the Philippine Amusements and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor) and Outlast Battery.

Lacson won’t go into the finer details of the opening ceremonies to be presented by San Beda, except by saying that “it’s going to be one of the best you will see in years.”

Multi-titled collegiate coach Aric Del Rosario has been appointed commissioner of the basketball event for the season, which has the theme “Winning Drive at 85.”

Others included in the league’s calendar of events are chess, lawn tennis, taekwondo, beach volleyball and soft tennis as demonstration sport.

San Beda will be gunning for a fourth straight men’s basketball title minus key players Sam Ekwe, Pong Escobal and Ogie Menor.

But Lacson said the Red Lions are looking good even without some of the pieces of their champion team. In general however, he said, ‘all schools had improved.’

“Of course, that’s good for the league because we always want competition,” said the MANCOM chief.

San Sebastian, Jose Rizal University, University of Perpetual Help-Dalta, Mapua, Letran and St. Benilde comprised the rest of the NCAA.