Ateneo standouts Joson and Dela Rosa will be training with the Gilas Women’s after a stellar performance in the UAAP S85.
After catching the last bus onto the UAAP Season 85 women’s basketball final four, two Ateneo Blue Eagles caught the attention of Gilas Pilipinas Women’s head coach Pat Aquino and received an invitation to train with the national team.
Dubbed as the Ateneo’s own Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant by head coach LA Mumar, shifty guard Jhazmin Joson and rookie superstar Kacey Dela Rosa have been called up for national team training after keeping their squad afloat in S85.
Dela Rosa is the runaway frontrunner for the Rookie of the Year award after posting averages of a team-high 16.9 points, 14.4 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks, reported Spin.ph.
Joson, a Filipino-American who was able to secure a Philippine passport resulting in her eligibility, was averaging 11.3 points, 6.6 boards, 6.8 assists, and 1.9 steals as one of the seniors in her team.
"Well it'll be an honor to play for the country. I wasn't really planning on going but I mean, if I'm invited, why not?" said Joson, a fourth-year guard, about the Gilas call after being eliminated from the final four by the reigning champions, NU Lady Bulldogs, on Wednesday, November 30.
Coach Mumar was thrilled by the inclusion of his girls in the training pool and assured that the pair will be free to train with the national team if they explicitly fulfill one condition.
"[I]papahiram namin itong dalawang ito. Promise. Basta okay yung grades nila, yun naman yung condition," said the first-year coach according to Spin.ph.
Meanwhile, the pair’s names have been thrown out by coach Aquino last week as possible reinforcements, together with UAAP standouts led by De La Salle’s Lee Sario with UST’s Tacky Tacatac and MVP candidate Eka Soriano as reported by Business World.
“I'm really preparing and I’ve already made a list. Definitely, it’s a good problem for me to expand the pool,” said Aquino as Gilas is bracing for a hectic 2023 with a three-pit bid on the line in the 32nd Southeast Asian Games in Cambodia on top of their list, as well as the Asian Games and the FIBA Asia Cup.
Tags: #UAAP, #basketball, #Gilas