By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Former San Beda high school superstar Chris Hubilla had a change of heart and will no longer play for the University of the Philippines (UP) Fighting Maroons in the upcoming UAAP Men’s basketball tournament.
Hubilla de-committed from the prestigious UAAP basketball program and is set to reinforce the Colegio de San Juan de Letran Knights in the NCAA men’s hoops tournament.
The development was confirmed last February 10, 2024, after Tiebreaker Times and GMA Sports first announced the news.
Last April 2023, Hubilla already committed to the UP Fighting Maroons when he was only a Grade 11 student at San Beda.
However, Hubilla changed his plans regarding his basketball future and will stay in the NCAA, hoping to continue his dominant run when he led the Red Cubs to a playoff qualification last NCAA juniors’ tournament.
Hubilla was a monster for the San Beda basketball program and averaged 20.86 points, 12.5 rebounds, 2.29 assists, and 1.79 steals per game.
His consistent streak of double-double performances then helped him win a spot as a member of the NCAA high school Mythical Team.
Hubilla became the second UP recruit who de-committed from the program after Jared Bahay of Ateneo de Cebu bared his shift from the Fighting Maroons to the Ateneo de Manila University.
The no. 1 high school player in the country announced that he wanted to embrace more doors and opportunities that are yet to come to him before the next UAAP season kicks off.
Bahay became the UAAP’s most-recruited point guard after leading Ateneo de Cebu to several championships at the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation Inc. (CESAFI) high school level.
Aside from his CESAFI dominance, Bahay was also the staple ball handler of the Batang Gilas program.
