UAAP Season 89 basketball tournaments
Filipino collegiate basketball season
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UAAP Season 89 basketball tournaments are the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) basketball tournaments for its 89th season. The Far Eastern University (FEU) are the season hosts, with the opening ceremony to be held at the SM Mall of Asia Arena on September 12, 2026.
| "For Everyone, UAAP" | |
| Host school | Far Eastern University |
|---|---|
The UAAP is expected to hold five tournaments: the men's and women's tournament in the collegiate division, and the under-16 boys' tournament in the high school division during the first semester, and the under-19 boys' and girls' tournament in the second semester.
Tournament format
The UAAP is expected to use the UAAP Final Four format for tournaments with 7 teams or more. There are five tournaments in two divisions: the collegiate division tournaments and the 16-under tournament of the high school division are being held in the first semester of the academic year. Meanwhile, the 19-under boys' and 19-under girls' tournaments will be held in the second semester.
The under-19 girls' tournament, which only has 4 teams, will see the top two teams qualify to the best-of-three finals.
In order to accomodate UAAP players who are participating in 3x3 basketball at the 2026 Asian Games and the 2026 FIBA 3x3 U23 World Cup, only five (instead of the expected eight) game days will be held between September 13 to 30, 2026.[1]
Teams
Men's basketball is a mandatory event in the UAAP, where all 8 universities are required to field in teams. The 19-under girls' tournament is a demonstration sport and is not mandatory.
| University | Men | Women | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | Coach | Team | Coach | |
| Adamson University (AdU) | Soaring Falcons |  Nash Racela |
Lady Falcons | Jed Colonia |
| Ateneo de Manila University (ADMU[a]) | Blue Eagles | Louie Alas |
Blue Eagles | PJ Navarro |
| De La Salle University (DLSU) | Green Archers | Topex Robinson |
Lady Archers | Pocholo Villanueva |
| Far Eastern University (FEU) | Tamaraws |  Sean Chambers |
Lady Tamaraws | Raiza Palmera-Dy |
| National University (NU) | Bulldogs | Jeff Napa |
Lady Bulldogs | D.A. Olan |
| University of the East (UE) | Red Warriors | Chris Gavina |
Lady Warriors | Ian Valdez |
| University of the Philippines (UP) | Fighting Maroons | Goldwin Monteverde |
Fighting Maroons | Eric Altamirano |
| University of Santo Tomas (UST) | Growling Tigers | Pido Jarencio |
Tigresses | Haydee Ong |
- Since 2017, Ateneo de Manila University is the only member school that does not use an acronym for official communications and graphics, according to their branding guide.[2] Third parties still routinely use the "ADMU" acronym to refer to Ateneo such as One Sports[3] and the LaSallian.[4]
Coaching changes
| Team | Outgoing coach | Manner of departure | Date | Replaced by | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UP Fighting Maroons (women) | Paul Ramos |
Mutual consent | November 22, 2025[5] | Eric Altamirano |
March 4, 2026[6] |
| Ateneo Blue Eagles (men) | Tab Baldwin |
Resignation | June 15, 2026[7] | Louie Alas (interim[a]) |
July 10, 2026[9] |
Ateneo's participation
On June 8, 2026, Ateneo Blue Eagles men's basketball players Divine Adili and Rene Baterbonia's deaths were announced by the Ateneo de Manila University. Ateneo announced that Adili, who had already played in the UAAP, and Baterbonia, a new recruit in the team, drowned in a team building activity off the waters of Dipaculao, Aurora.[10]
Two days later, the UAAP issued a statement saying they "will go where the evidence leads" in response to the drownings.[11] After their deaths, there was speculation on what the UAAP would do. Comparisons were made to UST's "Sorsogon bubble", La Salle's ineligiblity scandal, and Marlou Aquino's academic deficiencies but was still allowed to play by Adamson. UST's Aldin Ayo was (and still is) banned for life in the UAAP for "endangering the health and well-being of the student athletes under his charge", while both La Salle and Adamson were meted with one-season suspensions on all sports programs, not just basketball.[12] Almost two weeks later, the UAAP announced that members of the Ateneo coaching staff that were present in Aurora were banned from joining any UAAP-sanctioned activities.[13] Ateneo coach Tab Baldwin had earlier resigned as head coach.[7]
On August 7, the UAAP announced the perpetual ban on Tab Baldwin and certain Ateneo men's basketball staff, but allowed Ateneo's teams to participate.[14]
Venues
SM Mall of Asia Arena shall host the opening ceremonies.[15] The Araneta Coliseum then hosts the actual opening games a day later, with it sharing with the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
The 16U tournament is played on member schools' gymnasiums.
| Arena | Location | Tournament | Capacity | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| M | W | B | G | 16U | |||
| Adamson Gym | Manila |  |
|||||
| Araneta Coliseum | Quezon City | |
|
14,429 | |||
| Blue Eagle Gym (BEG) | |
7,500 | |||||
| FEU Diliman Gym | |
||||||
| SM Mall of Asia Arena (MOA) | Pasay | |
15,000 | ||||
Squads
Each team has a roster of up to 16 players. Only one "foreign student-athlete", non-Filipinos who are otherwise known as "imports" elsewhere, is allowed to be on the active roster.
Starting this season, the UAAP will allow up to two imports in their pool, with still one allowed on the active roster, while another is available on the reserve list. The change is to provide teams with "roster security".[16]
Men's tournament
The men's tournament shall begin on September 13, 2026, with the FEU Tamaraws going up against the Adamson Soaring Falcons.[17]
Elimination round
Team standings
| Pos | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Adamson Soaring Falcons |
0 | 0 | — | — | Twice-to-beat in the semifinals |
| 2 |  Ateneo Blue Eagles |
0 | 0 | — | — | |
| 3 |  De La Salle Green Archers |
0 | 0 | — | — | Twice-to-win in the semifinals |
| 4 |  FEU Tamaraws (H) |
0 | 0 | — | — | |
| 5 |  NU Bulldogs |
0 | 0 | — | — | |
| 6 |  UE Red Warriors |
0 | 0 | — | — | |
| 7 |  UP Fighting Maroons |
0 | 0 | — | — | |
| 8 |  UST Growling Tigers |
0 | 0 | — | — |
Rules for classification: 1) winning percentage; 2) if tied for #2 or #4, one-game playoff; 3) head-to-head record; 4) head-to-head point differential; 5) overall point differential:
(H) Hosts
Match-up results
= Win; = OT win; = Loss; = OT loss
Scores
Results on top and to the right of the grey cells are for first-round games; those to the bottom and to the left are second-round games.
Semifinals
If no team wins all elimination round games, the top two teams have the twice-to-beat advantage in the semifinals, where they have to be beaten twice, while their opponents just once, to advance.
If a team wins all elimination round games, the third and fourth ranked teams play in the first round of the single-elimination stepladder playoffs, with the second ranked team awaiting in the second round.
Finals
The finals shall be a best-of-three playoff.
Women's tournament
Elimination round
Team standings
| Pos | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Adamson Lady Falcons |
0 | 0 | — | — | Twice-to-beat in the semifinals |
| 2 | Ateneo Lady Eagles |
0 | 0 | — | — | |
| 3 | De La Salle Lady Archers |
0 | 0 | — | — | Twice-to-win in the semifinals |
| 4 | FEU Lady Tamaraws (H) |
0 | 0 | — | — | |
| 5 | NU Lady Bulldogs |
0 | 0 | — | — | |
| 6 | UE Lady Warriors |
0 | 0 | — | — | |
| 7 | UP Lady Maroons |
0 | 0 | — | — | |
| 8 | UST Growling Tigresses |
0 | 0 | — | — |
Rules for classification: 1) winning percentage; 2) if tied for #2 or #4, one-game playoff; 3) head-to-head record; 4) head-to-head point differential; 5) overall point differential:
(H) Hosts
Match-up results
= Win; = OT win; = Loss; = OT loss
Scores
Results on top and to the right of the grey cells are for first-round games; those to the bottom and to the left are second-round games.
Semifinals
If no team wins all elimination round games, the top two teams have the twice-to-beat advantage in the semifinals, where they have to be beaten twice, while their opponents just once, to advance.
If a team wins all elimination round games, the third and fourth ranked teams play in the first round of the single-elimination stepladder playoffs, with the second ranked team awaiting in the second round.
Finals
The finals shall be a best-of-three playoff.
16U tournament
The 16U tournament started on August 15, 2026.[18]
The games scheduled for August 29 and September 5 were postponed by the UAAP after the city governments of Manila and Quezon City postponed classes due to inclement weather.
Elimination round
Team standings
| Pos | Team | W | L | PCT | GB | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | FEU–D Baby Tamaraws (H) |
2 | 0 | 1.000 | — | Twice-to-beat in the semifinals |
| 2 | Zobel Junior Archers |
2 | 0 | 1.000 | — | |
| 3 | NUNS Bullpups |
2 | 0 | 1.000 | — | Twice-to-win in the semifinals |
| 4 | UE Junior Red Warriors |
1 | 1 | .500 | 1 | |
| 5 | UST Tiger Cubs |
1 | 1 | .500 | 1 | |
| 6 | UPIS Junior Fighting Maroons |
0 | 2 | .000 | 2 | |
| 7 | Ateneo Blue Eagles |
0 | 2 | .000 | 2 | |
| 8 | Adamson Baby Falcons |
0 | 2 | .000 | 2 |
Rules for classification: 1) winning percentage; 2) if tied for #2 or #4, one-game playoff; 3) head-to-head record; 4) head-to-head point differential; 5) overall point differential:
(H) Hosts
Match-up results
= Win; = OT win; = Loss; = OT loss
Scores
Results on top and to the right of the grey cells are for first-round games; those to the bottom and to the left are second-round games.
Semifinals
If no team wins all elimination round games, the top two teams have the twice-to-beat advantage in the semifinals, where they have to be beaten twice, while their opponents just once, to advance.
If a team wins all elimination round games, the third and fourth ranked teams play in the first round of the single-elimination stepladder playoffs, with the second ranked team awaiting in the second round.
Finals
The finals shall be a best-of-three playoff.