The NCAA’s management committee, together with Season 92 basketball tournament commissioner Andy Jao, have approved Monday afternoon the suspensions stemming from the near-melee that occurred between the San Beda College Red Lions and the Colegio de San Juan de Letran Knights last Friday.
In the report by commissioner Jao and approved by the NCAA, three Letran Knights players and San Beda’s Junjun Bonsubre have been slapped with one-game suspensions that will take effect immediately.
“Three players from Letran. Chris Dela Pena, Marco Sario, and Jerrick Balanza,” NCAA chairman Jose Mari Lacson told Tiebreaker Times. “Balanza [was suspended] because it was his second unsportsmanlike foul.”
Sario and Dela Pena have also been handed suspensions due to entering the court during a fight or doing anything that may instigate a fight.
Fifth year San Beda big man Bonsubre was handed a one-game suspension for the same reason.
“Bonsubre for entering,” Lacson added.
The heated tilt between the two rivals reached a boiling point with seven seconds remaining in the game after Bong Quinto accidentally elbowed Joe Presbitero that resulted to an offensive foul called on the former. However, the limited footage available due to technical difficulties hampered the investigation of the case.
“The video of the game did not show any San Beda player entering the court. This was maybe because of the position of the cameras during the game,” the NCAA Mancom chairman said.
“We were telling commissioner [Andy Jao] na not to put any sanctions if you can’t see. And the board agreed to it naman.”
The suspension for the three Letran student-athletes will take effect on Tuesday, August 30 when the Knights take on the CSB Blazers at 4:00pm while Bonsubre will be out for the San Beda-Mapua tilt on Thursday, September 1.
