Benilde Blazers basketball

The Blazers joined the NCAA in 1998. Two years later, they won the championship vs. the San Sebastian Stags, while under probation. The Blazers won just days after their brother team De La Salle Green Archers won the UAAP championship.[1] The Blazers, under the leadership of players such as Mark Magsumbol and Sunday Salvacion developed a rivalry with the Stags, whom they met again the Finals two years later; this time, the Stags won.[2] Dong Vergeire coached the Blazers during this time.[3]

After this run of qualifying to the playoffs, the Blazers have not made it to this stage of the tournament since.[4] From 2005 until 2007, they were coached by former Benilde player Caloy Garcia; he led them to three consecutive losing seasons.[5] Gee Abanilla and Richard del Rosario next coached the team for the next four years, with the team missing the playoffs on all instances, with Del Rosario resigning in 2012.[6] With new coach Gabby Velasco, the Blazers avoided last place in 2013, then narrowly missed the playoffs in 2014.[7] The next year, the Blazers endured a 17-game losing streak, only to win on their last game, finishing last.[8] Velasco resigned and was replaced by TY Tang.[9] Tang led the Blazers to fifth place finishes in his second and third year of coaching the team, but migrated to Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic.[10]

In 2022, the Blazers appointed Charles Tiu to coach the team.[11] In his first year in NCAA Season 97 would be closest they've gotten to make it to the playoffs where they finished fourth after the elimination round, but due to COVID-19 restrictions, each team met the other teams only once, and a play-in tournament was done in lieu of the second round. It was in the play-in tournament where the Blazers were eliminated.[4]