There is no truth to the social media narrative circulating online suggesting friction between Kieffer Alas and the family of the late Rene Baterbonia.

This was clarified by Joevince Eusebio, Rene’s agent and, coincidentally, Kieffer’s godfather, following a viral clip showing Alas approaching Rene’s mother, Rovelyn, during the Ateneo men’s basketball team’s visit to Rene’s wake at Arlington Memorial Chapels in Quezon City last Wednesday, June 10.

The video was uploaded by the Facebook page Mirayah, which is run by Baterbonia’s aunt, on Wednesday evening.

“Walang [katotohanan] yung mga issues na linalagay sa social media. Doon lang tayo sa kung yung totoo at sa alam ng family ni Rene Baterbonia,” Eusebio said during a press briefing held at the Ateneo de Davao University Bangkal Campus on Friday afternoon.

In his explanation, Eusebio said he personally introduced Alas—his godson—to Rovelyn during the Blue Eagles’ visit. What followed, he said, was a heartfelt exchange centered on a missed opportunity involving Rene.

Alas had earlier requested Eusebio, who also handles Phenom-New Zealand Creamery/Bluefire managed by Anthony Brodett, to have Baterbonia as his teammate in Phenom for the 2026 NBTC National Finals last March.

“Si Kieffer was there, pag-approach ni Kieffer sa mom, nagkwento sila. Pumasok ako doon kasi Kieffer is my inaanak, and I introduced him to the mother of Rene, I said: ‘Mommy, ito po si Kieffer Alas. Inaanak ko po siya.’ And when we played for NBTC in Manila, isa lang ang request na teammate ni Kieffer Alas — si Rene Baterbonia,” Eusebio explained.

“It was Kieffer’s request na makasama si Rene sa NBTC. That was a conversation down nung humarap kami sa mama ni Rene. Kaya lang, may mga ibang stories na lumalabas sa social media.”

However, Baterbonia ended up suiting up for Off-Campus Residences x Toyomoto – Ateneo de Davao in the NBTC after the 2025 Palarong Pambansa MVP helped his squad secure the last two regional wildcard spots in the NBTC Mindanao Regional Championship, preventing the two from ever playing on the same team.

The closest they came to sharing the court was during the All-Star Game of the 2026 NBTC National Finals, where Alas suited up for Team Heart and Baterbonia played for Team Hustle.

The two were widely regarded as cornerstones of Ateneo’s future in the highly competitive UAAP men’s basketball landscape, a trajectory cut short after Baterbonia, along with Nigerian teammate Divine Adili, died in a drowning incident last Monday during a team-building activity in Dipaculao, Aurora.

“Kaya lang, ang team ni Coach Jess ay nakapasok sa Mindanao Finals, kaya wala kaming chance na makalaro si Rene. That’s the story,” Eusebio stressed.

“Walang [katotohanan] yung mga issues na linalagay sa social media.”

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Ateneo de Manila University head coach Tab Baldwin admitted Friday evening that he had failed as a leader, coach, and friend to deceased Blue Eagles players Rene Baterbonia and Divine Adili, who both passed away during a team-building activity in Dipaculao, Aurora last Monday.

The address marked Baldwin’s first public statement in over four days since the passing of Baterbonia and Adili on June 8, a delay that ultimately prompted Philippine Sports Commission chairman Pato Gregorio to publicly urge the American-Kiwi coach to speak out.

“At that moment, I felt that I had failed. I failed as a leader. I felt I had failed as a coach. I certainly felt like I had failed as a friend to Divine and Rene. And when later I faced the team to try to be a leader in that moment, I felt that I failed them, too,” Baldwin said.

Baldwin explained that what began as a routine conditioning exercise turned fatal, as players were sent out for what they believed was a simple training run in shallow water.

However, the situation took a turn for the worse when Baldwin and his coaching staff realized the athletes were already caught in deeper, dangerous currents.

“On that fateful day when we sent the players out for a routine training run and what we thought was shallow water, up to the moment when we realized that whatever had happened, they were in dangerous water,” Baldwin said.

“And we did everything that we could as coaches, as people responsible for that situation. The players themselves did everything they could to ensure that everybody arrived back on shore safely. And then we realized that we hadn’t accomplished that,” he added.

Baldwin also spoke at length about the weight of his responsibility to the families of Baterbonia and Adili, acknowledging that while he grieved as a mentor and friend, the depth of the families’ loss far surpassed his own.

Both families have expressed disappointment over how Ateneo, particularly Baldwin, has handled the situation.

Rovelyn Baterbonia, Rene’s mother, said Baldwin has yet to reach out to her and that she is not yet ready to face him, with the family’s legal team — led by Jimmy Bondoc and Israelito Torreon — separately seeking an immigration lookout bulletin order against Baldwin from the Department of Justice.

On the other hand, Divine Adili’s father, Elias Adili, said yesterday that their family is still searching for answers regarding the circumstances surrounding his son’s death, with the family requesting an autopsy before his remains are repatriated to Nigeria.

“We are carrying immense sorrow. We’re carrying immense grief. We’re carrying immense remorse. But I’ve known since the moment that I was told that our boys had passed away that no matter the magnitude of our grief, there were two families that experienced a loss that was so much greater than ours and a loss that would stay with them in the most acute way for the remainder of their lives,” Baldwin said.

“Never again would Rene’s mother and father and family, never again would Divine’s family be able to talk to their son or touch their son,” he went on.

Baldwin also said his deepest regret lies in the fact that he will never again be able to help Baterbonia and Adili develop into the basketball players and young men they were capable of becoming.

Baterbonia, an 18-year-old forward from Talacogon, Agusan del Sur, was one of the top prospects of his class, leading the Davao Region to the 2025 Palarong Pambansa championship where he was named MVP.

Meanwhile, Adili, a 6-foot-10 center from Nigeria, was poised for a breakout campaign in Season 89 after contributing 7.5 points and 8.17 rebounds in an injury-derailed Season 88 campaign.

(C) UAAP Season 88 Media Team

“Yes, as a coach, I lost my boys, too. Never again would I be able to help them develop into the basketball players they wanted to be, to help them grow into the young men that they promised they could be. But that’s insignificant compared to what your families are experiencing,” Baldwin said.

“As a coach, we are entrusted with the growth of our basketball players, the development of these young men into future professionals. But mostly, as a coach, I’m entrusted by you, the parents and the families, with first and foremost, their well-being. And in this, I feel I’ve failed. And I’m sorry. To the depth of my being, I’m sorry,” he added.

Baldwin closed his eight-minute video by extending his apology beyond the two families, addressing everyone who felt let down or betrayed in the wake of the tragedy.

He also called for unity and healing, urging the Blue Eagles community and the nation to move forward together rooted in faith.

“So as we all try to move forward without Divine and Rene, I hope that in binding together as a community, as a basketball team, and as a nation, that we lean on the one place that will never let us down, and that is our Lord. I’m so deeply sorry. And I’m so deeply sorry to not just the families, but everybody that feels let down, somehow betrayed,” Baldwin said.

“And I pray that we all find some pathway forward to come back to hope for the future, love for one another, and forgiveness for those of us who failed and tried so desperately hard to reach a better outcome. I wish peace for everybody. I wish comfort for everybody who is hurting. And I pray that we will all find that. God bless you all. And we are trying. Thank you.”

As of writing, the Department of Labor and Employment, the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the National Bureau of Investigation, the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group under the Philippine National Police, and the Department of Justice are leading investigations into the tragedy that claimed the lives of Baterbonia and Adili.

The post Baldwin expresses deep apology, grief after tragic passing of Adili, Baterbonia appeared first on Tiebreaker Times.

Ateneo de Manila University clarified that head coach Tab Baldwin’s silence in the wake of the deaths of student-athletes Rene Baterbonia and Divine Adili was made at the University’s request — not on his own accord or personal decision.

In a statement released on Thursday, June 11, by Ateneo president Fr. Roberto C. Yap SJ, the University said it had asked Baldwin to “refrain from making public statements” to allow official processes by national authorities and concerned agencies to proceed.

Baterbonia, 19, and Adili, 21, died on Monday afternoon after a drowning incident during a team-building activity at the Hermanos Leisure Farm and Surf Camp in Barangay Libis, Dipaculao, Aurora.

“The University wishes to clarify that Coach Tab Baldwin’s silence following the tragedy was not a personal decision made independently of the University,” the statement read.

“The University requested that Coach Baldwin refrain from making public statements to allow the official processes to proceed and the facts to be established before any public discussion of the matter.”

From the University’s perspective, Fr. Yap added that the immediate focus was to provide Baldwin — a 68-year-old mentor who has steered the Blue Eagles to four UAAP men’s basketball championships — with emotional and psychological support, along with the players, coaches, staff, and members of the Atenean community affected by the tragedy.

The statement also stressed that it was “neither appropriate nor helpful” for Baldwin to engage in public commentary while the community was still mourning and while the circumstances surrounding the incident were still being examined.

“In the immediate aftermath of this heartbreaking loss, our guidance to Coach Baldwin was to focus his attention on the emotional and psychological welfare of the players, coaches, and staff affected by the incident, while also attending to his own well-being as someone who is grieving alongside the rest of the community,” the statement read.

“At a time when our priority was caring for those most directly affected, we believed it was neither appropriate nor helpful to ask Coach Baldwin to engage in public commentary while the community was mourning and while the circumstances surrounding the incident were still being examined.”

Ateneo has since placed Baldwin and team manager Epok Quimpo on leave for the duration of the school’s independent fact-finding inquiry.

As of writing, the Department of Labor and Employment, the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the National Bureau of Investigation, the Criminal Investigation and Detection Group under the Philippine National Police, and the Department of Justice are leading investigations into the tragedy that claimed the lives of Baterbonia and Adili.

The Philippine Sports Commission has also formed its own Sports Stakeholders’ Panel, led by Chairman Pato Gregorio, Commissioner Fritz Gaston, Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas Executive Director Atty. Erika Dy, Commission on Higher Education Chairperson Shirley Agrupis, National Youth Commission Chairperson Jeff Ortega, and Department of Education Undersecretary Malcolm Garma.

“His silence should therefore not be misconstrued as indifference or a lack of concern. Rather, it reflects the University’s decision to place care, healing, and due process ahead of public discussion,” the statement read.

“As the various inquiries proceed, the University remains confident that the truth, established through facts rather than speculation, will in due course provide the clarity and understanding that this tragedy demands.”

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