The Arellano Chiefs basketball program represents

Arellano University Arellano University (AU) is a private university, private, nonsectarian university located in Manila, the Philippines. It was founded in 1938 as a law school by Florentino Cayco Sr., the first Filipino Undersecretary of Public Instruction. The u ...

in men's basketball as a member of the

National Collegiate Athletic Association (Philippines) The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA; ) is an athletic association of ten private colleges and universities in Metro Manila, Philippines. Established in 1924, it is the oldest collegiate athletic association in the country. It i ...

(NCAA). Originally the Arellano Flaming Arrows, the

Arellano Chiefs The Arellano University Chiefs and Lady Chiefs are the athletic teams of Arellano University's varsity program. The university is a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the National Capital Region Athletic Associat ...

have previously played in the

National Capital Region Athletic Association The National Capital Region Athletic Association (NCRAA) is an athletic association in Metro Manila (National Capital Region), Philippines established in 1993. It is primarily held during the second semester of a school around November until Febr ...

(NCRAA), winning two consecutive championships from 2007 and 2008. The Chiefs transferred to the NCAA in 2010, and have qualified to two Finals appearances, in 2014 and 2016, losing each time to the defending champions

San Beda Red Lions The San Beda Red Lions and Lionesses are the collegiate varsity teams of the San Beda University, best known for their basketball section.Malonso, J. ''"NCAA: A HISTORY''". NCAA(Phils) Homepage. Online. Internet. Accessed 23 May 200NCAA Philippi ...

History

Beginnings

The Arellano Flaming Arrows won the

Basketball Association of the Philippines The Basketball Association of the Philippines (BAP) was the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) recognized national governing body for basketball in the Philippines. It was recognized by the FIBA in 1936 until 2007 when the Samahang B ...

-organized National Student's Championship in the 1970s. The Flaming Arrows, coached by Cholo Martin and led by Joey Loyzaga, defeated the

De La Salle Green Archers The De La Salle Green Archers and Lady Archers are the varsity teams representing De La Salle University in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines, among other leagues. The "Green Archer" is the traditional university mascot. Whi ...

in the 1983 National Intercollegiate Championship. In 2006, the Flaming Arrows were named into the Chiefs, in honor of

Cayetano Arellano Cayetano Simplicio Arellano y Lonzón (March 2, 1847 – December 23, 1920) was the first Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines under the American Civil Government. Cayetano Arellano had occupied a high position in Aguinaldo's go ...

, the first

Chief Justice of the Philippines The chief justice of the Philippines () presides over the Supreme Court and is the highest judicial officer of the government of the Philippines. As of April 5, 2021, the position is currently held by Alexander Gesmundo, who was appointed by Pr ...

and university's namesake.

NCRAA stint

In 2006, the Chiefs lost out to the St. Francis Doves in the NCRAA Finals. On the next year, they defeated the EAC Generals to win their first NCRAA title off the heroics of Gio Ciriacruz. The Chiefs then defeated the Doves in the next season's Finals. In the 2009 campaign they were defeated by the Universal College Golden Dragons in the finals. Arellano sought to enter the NCAA in time for the 2009–10 season, but the association deferred in accepting new members. The NCAA instead invited three schools, including Arellano as guest teams.

Entry to the NCAA

The Chiefs ended up with the best record among the three guest teams. In 2014, led by

Jio Jalalon Jiovani Nacawili Jalalon (born August 2, 1992) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the NorthPort Batang Pier of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). Early life The third of the six children of Vicente Jalalon and Jocelyn N ...

and coach

Jerry Codiñera Jerry Herman Codiñera (born November 14, 1966) is a Filipino coach and retired professional basketball player of the Philippine Basketball Association. He is nicknamed the "Defense Minister" for his prowess at the defensive end. He is the curre ...

, the Chiefs qualified to its first Finals appearance. They were swept by the four-time defending champions

. On the next year, the Chiefs missed the Final Four, but returned to the Finals in 2016. In a rematch of the 2014 Finals, the Chiefs were again swept by San Beda. Two years later, the Chiefs struggled on the floor and had a losing season. Codiñera resigned and replaced by Junjie Ablan. On the next campaign the university rehired Cholo Martin as its new coach. Martin's best season came in the 2021 bubble season played in early 2022, where they were eliminated in the play-in tournament by the

Perpetual Altas The Perpetual Altas and Lady Altas, or the UPHSD Altas and Lady Altas, are the National Collegiate Athletic Association (Philippines) teams of the University of Perpetual Help System DALTA. They are also popularly known as the Perps. Since join ...

. The Chiefs missed the playoffs in 2022; Martin was fired and was replaced by Chico Manabat.

Current roster

NCAA Season 100

Head coaches

* c. 1983:

Loreto Carbonell Loreto "Bonnie" Dilema Carbonell (1933 – 23 September 2017) was a Philippines, Filipino basketball player who competed in the Basketball at the 1956 Summer Olympics, 1956 Summer Olympics. Career Playing career Sometime during his early years, F ...

* 1980s: Cholo Martin * 2010–2011:

Leo Isaac Leandro "Leo" Isaac (born February 2, 1961) is a Filipino former basketball player, commentator, and former head coach of the Blackwater Elite in the Philippine Basketball Association. He is chief operating officer of the basketball league Si ...

* 2011: Junjie Ablan * 2012–13:

Koy Banal Enrico "Koy" Banal, is a Filipino people, Filipino professional basketball head coach. Coaching career Played as a San Beda Red Lions basketball, Red Lion in his college days, Banal has had extensive head coaching experience in the collegiate an ...

* 2013–18:

** 2018: Junjie Ablan (interim) * 2018–2022: Cholo Martin * 2023–present: Chico Manabat

Season-by-season records

Honors

* National Intercollegiate Championship ** Champions (1): 1983 *

** Champions (2): 2006, 2007

References

{{NCAA-PH men's basketball National Collegiate Athletic Association (Philippines) basketball teams