JAMIKE JARIN begins rebuilding National University’s (NU) basketball program when he officially takes over as the Bulldogs head coach on Friday.
And tops on Jarin’s list is to evaluate each and every Bulldog carried over from last year’s squad that finished a dismal fifth place in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP).
“We will be evaluating each player on the roster. I really want a competitive team in the coming season,” said Jarin, who took over Eric Altamirano.
Altamirano steered NU to its first UAAP crown in five decades in 2014, but fared miserably last season with five wins and nine losses.
Jarin’s staff includes Danny Ildefonso, a former NU star and two-time Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Most Valuable Player, and two-time PBA champion John Ferriols.
Fresh from steering the San Beda Red Lions to its ninth title in 11 years in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) last season, Jarin jumped to the UAAP, the same path Aldin Ayo took after coaching Letran to the NCAA title in 2015.
Ayo was successful in his UAAP debut, with De La Salle beating archrival Ateneo in this season’s final.
A San Beda alumnus, Jarin had an impressive stint as head coach of different teams. He led Ateneo to eight UAAP juniors titles and was the Batang Gilas coach in 2014.