Basketball
Dindo Pumaren, staff resign from La Salle
La Salle head coach Dindo Pumaren stepped down from his post after failing to lead the Green Archers to the semifinals of the 74th UAAP men’s basketball tournament.
On September 11, Pumaren and his coaching staff filed their resignations, which the school accepted with deep regret.
In a text message, Pumaren said he’s resigning from his job after two seasons with the Archers to give the school enough time to revamp the program. Once a perennial title contender, the team has missed the playoffs twice in the last three seasons.
“To chart the direction of the Men’s Basketball Team, the University has formed a basketball program review committee and is chaired by DLSU Vice Chancellor for Lasallian Mission and Alumni Relations Br. Bernard S. Oca FSC,” said a statement from the schol’s Office of Sports Development.
Pumaren led the Archers back to the final four last year after finishing the regular season with an 8-6 mark, before losing to Far Eastern University in the semifinals.
This season, La Salle had a horrendous second round campaign, winning only once in seven games after going 4-3 in the first round. The Archers ended the season with a 5-9 win-loss slate, finishing sixth.
Pumaren took over from older brother Franz in 2010. The younger Pumaren’s assistants Tonichi Yturi, Jack Santiago and Lawrence Yulo also handed in their notices.
While the school searches for a new head coach, a couple of names have been mentioned, including Barangay Ginebra co-coach Jong Uichico and Petron Blaze assistant Gee Abanilla.
But in a recent interview, Uichico said that he’s done coaching at the collegiate level. Uichico led La Salle to runner-up finishes in the UAAP in 1996 and 1997 before being replaced by Franz Pumaren.
Abanilla was a former La Salle player in the 1980s. As a coach, he once served as an assistant to Franz Pumaren.
Dindo Pumaren’s resignation from Archers marks the end of the Pumaren era in Taft that began in 1998, when Franz was appointed to coach the team. Their father, Pilo, and eldest brother Derrick also spent time at the helm of the once-proud program.
