Pinoy Basketball Legend Tribute - Lauro "The Fox" Mumar of Letran Murder Inc NCAA 1950 title

Lauro Mumar a basketball figure from Talibon, Bohol, first caught the eyes of local fans when he came to Manila and played for San Carlos College from Cebu City and his team copped the 1947 national intercollegiate championship. He was later taken by the Manila Port Terminal and was instrumental in giving his team the MICAA championship from 1948-50. He then enrolled at Letran College to finish his studies and the Muralla quintet copped its second NCAA title in 1951. He was the undisputed chairman of the Murder Inc. of Letran which included other cage luminaries like ex-Manila ViceMayor Herminio Astorga; Louie Tabuena, now chairman of the Games and Amusements Board; Chemari Iglesias, Ricardo Panis, cage columnist Fred Luarca; and RP coach Nilo Verona. In 1953, Mumar was at his peak and this time he wore the PRISCO uniform in the MICAA and the prize stabilizers bagged the title. The same year, the PRISCO quintet went on to take the national open crown and subsequently the Challenge which then featured the MICAA, NCAA and UAAP titleholders. He first made the national team in the 1948 London Olympics. His I second was in the First Asian Games in New Delhi, India in 1951, After Delhi, he was again in the Asian Games team in 1954 in Manila. The Philippines retained the Asian Games championship and the Filipinos earned a ticket for the Second World Amateur basketball tournament in the same year in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

With Mumar already on top, he was appointed captain of the Brazil squad and the Philippines placed third to champion United States and host Brazil. A twist of fate forced Mumar to quit basketball in 1956. It was during the MICAA tournament when Mumar was playing for Seven-Up. Gabby Fajardo, Mumar's teammate in the 1948 London Olympics, was then coaching the Marauders. At one instance during the tournament, Fajardo, due to unavoidable circumstances, was absent from the Seven-Up bench and Mumar acted as playing coach but appeared in the game in civilian clothes. Unaware of the ruling of the then PAAF basketball committee chairmanned by Chito Calvo, Mumar's London Olympics coach, The Fox was declared a 'suspended amateur' for six months for violating the rule. As it stood then, Mumar could not have violated the rule had he coached the team in playing uniform. Mumar was bitter on the action of the PAAF basketball committee and when he was asked to tryout for the 1956 Melbourne Olympics, he turned it down and announced his retirement from the game.