Lyceum Pirates basketball
The Lyceum Pirates basketball program represents Lyceum of the Philippines University in men's basketball as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (Philippines). The Lyceum Pirates previously co-founded the Inter-Scholastic Athletic Association.
History
Run at MUCAA
Leo Austria and Dante Gonzalgo played for Lyceum while it was a member of the now defunct Manila Universities and Colleges Athletic Association in the late 1970s and early 1980s.Stint with NCRAA
The Lyceum Pirates previously saw the likes of Gary David and Chico Lanete play for the Intramuros-based school. Playing at the National Capital Region Athletic Association, Bai Cristobal coached Lyceum at this time. The Pirates were defeated by the St. Francis Doves in the 2003 finals.ISAA champions
Coached by Bonnie Tan starting in 2003, the Pirates won two undefeated championships in the ISAA, and two runs to the Sweet 16 in the Philippine Collegiate Champions League.Entry to the NCAA
Lyceum then entered the NCAA as a guest team in 2011, and was admitted as a regular member in 2015. Tan resigned as coach in 2014, and was replaced by Topex Robinson. They would first make it to the playoffs in 2017 when CJ Perez led them to an 18–0 elimination round record, only to lose in the finals to the San Beda Red Lions. The Pirates defeated the Red Lions for the championship though in the postseason 2017 PCCL. They would meet in an NCAA Finals rematch as a #2 seed with the Red Lions in the next season, but still lost. The championship series saw Perez suspended in Game 1 for failing to notify the NCAA of his intentions to join the 2018 PBA Draft.The Pirates then finished second in 2019, but lost to eventual champions Letran Knights in the playoffs. After being appointed as head coach of the Philippine Basketball Association's Phoenix Fuel Masters in 2018, Robinson was replaced by Jeff Perlas. Perlas himself didn't coach the Pirates in an NCAA game as he resigned for personal reasons in 2021; he was replaced by Gilbert Malabanan. Malabanan coached the Pirates in the 2021 bubble season to 2–7 record, way off the play-in tournament places. The Pirates made it to the playoffs in the 2022 season, losing out to Letran in the semifinals. They made it to Final Four the following 2023 season with a twice to beat advantage as the second seed but lost both games to the eventual champions San Beda and the Benilde Blazers in the first battle for third place in NCAA basketball history.
Current roster
'''NCAA Season 100'''Head coaches
- c. 2003: Bai Cristobal
- 2003–2014: Bonnie Tan
- 2014–2020: Topex Robinson
- 2021–2025: Gilbert Malabanan
- 2026–present: Jamike Jarin
Season-by-season records
Honors
Team honors
- Philippine Collegiate Champions League
- * Champions : 2017
- Inter-Scholastic Athletic Association
- * Champions : 2019, 2010
Player honors
- PCCL Most Valuable Player:
- * Jaycee Marcelino : 2017
- NCAA Most Valuable Player
- * CJ Perez : 2017
- NCAA Rookie of the Year
- * Mike Harry Nzeusseu: 2016
- * Jaycee Marcelino: 2017
- NCAA Defensive Player of the Year
- * Joseph Gabayni : 2014
- NCAA Most Improved Player
- * Shawn Umali : 2022
- NCAA Best Defensive Foreign Player
- * Mike Harry Nzeusseu : 2019