National University scores a recruiting coup
After being mentored by former Far Eastern University Tamaraws head coach Nash Racela during the 2016 SEABA Championship, being toured in the Ateneo campus last December, and having dinner with De La Salle University head coach Aldin Ayo last month, Jonas Tibayan has finally decided where he will enroll for college, according to multiple sources. But the 17-year-old will not join any of those three programs.
Tibayan, the number three ranked senior in this recruiting class, is set to commit to the National University Bulldogs, as affirmed by multiple sources closely monitoring the situation.
“Mag-NU na si Jonas,” a source from one of the schools who tried to recruit Tibayan told Tiebreaker Times.
“We stopped with our efforts to persuade him to join us,” another source added. “Nasa NU na siya.”
Tibayan’s camp remains mum.
A product of the Chang Kai Shek basketball program under coach Goldwyn Monteverde, the 6-foot-3 utility forward averaged 11.4 points on 48 percent shooting and 12.4 rebounds during the 2016 Philippine Secondary Schools Basketball Championship, leading CKSC to the Finals. He will still have one last commitment for the Blue Dragons, joining the squad for the 2017 Palarong Pambansa.
Besides being one of the top high school recruits, Tibayan has the distinction of being the youngest cager to join the Men’s National Basketball Team, campaigning with the team that won gold in the 2016 SEABA Championship. He was also part of the U18 team that played in the 2016 FIBA Asia Championship.
He is set to join Matt Salem, Joshua Sinclair, Med Salim, and Reggie Morido as the Bulldogs’ forwards.
