Tributes overflow for legendary basketball coach Jun Noel

With love and gratitude from the Cebu basketball community, tributes overflow for legendary coach Agripino “Jun” Noel who passed away at the age of 81 recently.

- EMMANUEL B. VILLARUEL Sports Editor

“Rest in peace tito Junior, my coaching teacher. We worked for a long time, thank you for making me coach for 32 years,” said veteran coach Bong Pineda, whose career was shaped by his uncle Jun.

“Rest easy, coach tatay Jun Noel. Thank you sa pagsalig, pag-guide ug pag-mold nako as a player tay. Di nako maabot ang akong naabot ron sa basketball kung dili tungod nimo tay. I love you coach tatay!” said Nichole John Ubalde, one of the players under the tutelage of Noel during his stint with the University of San Jose-Recoletos (USJ-R) Jaguars in the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. (CESAFI) a decade ago.

Before taking the reins as USJ-R coach in 2013, Noel has already made a mark as a topnotch bench strategist with multiple championship titles under his belt.