Header Ads Widget

Ayo stays mum about how referees fared in Letran-Lyceum game

Rey Nambatac and Kevin Racal earned raves from Coach Aldin Ayo for leading
Letran's charge without Mark Cruz. Dennis Acosta (file photo)
By Ivan Saldajeno

SAN JUAN, MM--Letran and Lyceum engaged in a wild NCAA encounter on Tuesday that featured a huge number of fouls, a bloodied nose, a player sent off, and a curious case of mistaken identity.

In that last highlight, Letran Coach Aldin Ayo, known to be composed, showed resentment.

Ayo complained to the referees as they called the foul on the wrong guy. McJour Luib was credited with the foul that would get him out of the game for good, although replays showed that Bong Quinto was the one with the foul and Luib was nowhere in the play.

The officials stuck with the call and handed Ayo a technical foul.

Despite the incident, the Knights won for the seventh straight time after edging the Pirates, 83-78.

[Related Story: Letran holds off Lyceum in physical match]

But unlike Mapua coach Atoy Co, who openly rued the officiating of his team's game against, coincidentally, Lyceum, Ayo chose to keep quiet.

The rookie Letran mentor told the press after the game, "I don't want to comment regarding the officiating."

He explained, "Kung sabihin kong maganda, that would be unfair to the others. Pag sabihin ko namang hindi maganda, that would be unfair to them also."

On the other hand, he praised Kevin Racal and Rey Nambatac for stepping up in the temporary absence of Mark Cruz, who sat out most of the game because of a nasal injury suffered in the second quarter of the match.

Ayo said, "Alam naman [ng buong team] yun. Yung tatlong yun [Racal, Nambatac, and Cruz], sa kanila humuhugot ng opensa. Yung mga ginagawa ni Mark, sila na ang gumawa."

But he praised Cruz more for enduring the pain and even offered to be sent back to the game.

"Anybody can play, but iba yung Mark Cruz. I asked him. Sabi niya, 'Ready ako,'" Ayo narrated how he opted to bring back the point guard to the game.