Louie Alas named interim Ateneo head coach

Louie Alas has been named head coach of the Ateneo Blue Eagles men's basketball team even as the university continues to face scrutiny over the deaths of Rene Baterbonia and Divine Adii last month.

Alas' appointment comes a little over a month after former head coach Tab Baldwin resigned from his post following the drowning incident that took the lives of Baterbonia and Adili.

Alas, who joined Baldwin's coaching staff in 2024, will take over the program on an interim basis ahead of the UAAP Season 89, which begins in September. However, neither the league nor the school has announced whether Ateneo will participate in the upcoming season.

Alas has more than two decades of coaching experience. The 62-year-old tactician, also the father of NLEX guard Kevin Alas, has called the shots in the collegiate ranks with Colegio de San Juan de Letran, which he led to three NCAA titles.

He also had coaching stints with Phoenix in the PBA and Zamboanga in the MPBL.

As the Blue Eagles head coach, Alas will guide his son Kieffer and other holdovers Jared Bahay, Ian Espinosa, Kyle Gamber, and Sam Reyes among others as Ateneo looks to regroup following the incident.

Aside from Alas, former Blue Eagle Nico Salva was also appointed as the interim team manager while former Letran player RJ Jazul also joins the coaching staff, as reported by the school's official student publication, the Guidon.

—JMB, GMA News