Carlos Loyzaga

Carlos M. Loyzaga^[1] (born August 29, 1930) is a former Filipino basketball player and coach. He led the Philippine National team to a Bronze Medal finish in the 1954 FIBA World Championship. The Philippines third place finish remains the highest rank of any Asian team in the history of the tournament. He is also the father of the Filipina TV and movie actresses Bing Loyzaga and Teressa Loyzaga.

Early life

Loyzaga was born to a Basque family during World War II and he is the son of former Philippine national football team member and player Joaquin Loyzaga. After surviving the war with his mother, sister and two brothers, he attended San Beda College, where he played for the San Beda Red Lions basketball team in the Philippine NCAA. Standing at 191 cm (6 ft 3 in), he towered over most other players in the league and came to be a dominating player at the center position. Because of his shooting and rebounding ability, he quickly became a superstar in the Philippines. He led the Red Lions to a consecutive NCAA championships win during his career.

Loyzaga began his basketball career in 1942, playing for the Santa Mesa Aces whose team included Pablo and Vicente Cuna, Ramón López (the chair of the Letran Hall of Fame), Vicente Siyllon (who became president of Insular Life), and Bobby and Al Tuazon. Their coach was José Lansang. After World War II, Loyzaga played for a team called Bulldogs which was coached by Joker Faustino. He studied at the Padre Burgos Elementary School in Santa Mesa, Manila and National University for his high school.

Loyzaga was about to enroll in University of Santo Tomas (UST) for his college education but before he could wear the UST jersey, player and coach Felicisimo Fajardo took him to San Beda College to play basketball. He displayed his basketball skills at the Tervalac playground in Santa Mesa before gaining popularity in the NCAA as a member of the San Beda Red Lions in the 1950s. He also played for the club Pratra, then coached by Gabriel Fajardo. Pratra won the MICAA title in 1951.

Career

He played college basketball for the San Beda Red Lions in the NCAA before leading the team to 49 consecutive victories in the now-defunct Manila Industrial and Commercial Athletic Association (MICAA) from 1954 to 1956. Loyzaga, a two-time Olympian was a member of the Philippine national basketball team in the 1950s and early 1960s. He help the national team into becoming one of the best in the world, winning four consecutive Asian Games gold medals and two consecutive FIBA Asia Championships.

Loyzaga’s finest moment was the 1954 FIBA World Championship where he led the Philippines to a third place finish and captured the bronze medal in the process. It is the best finish by an Asian country and the Philippines have remained the only Asian medalists in the tournament. Loyzaga himself finished as one of the tournament’s leading scorer with a 16.4 points-per-game average and was named in the tournament's All-Star selection. He retired in 1964 following a 15 year career in basketball.

Record

College

• 1951 NCAA Basketball Champions
• 1952 NCAA Basketball Champions

MICAA

• 1954 National Basketball Champions
• 1955 National Basketball Champions
• 1956 National Basketball Champions
• 1957 National Basketball Champions
• 1958 National Basketball Champions
• 1959 National Basketball Champions
• 1960 National Basketball Champions
• 1964 MICAA Champions

International career

• 1951 Asian Games champions
• 1952 Olympic Games, ninth place
• 1954 Asian Games champions
• 1954 FIBA World Championship bronze medalist
  • FIBA World Championship All-Star Mythical Five (1954)
• 1956 Olympic Games, seventh place
• 1958 Asian Games champions
• 1959 FIBA World Championship, eighth place
• 1960 FIBA Asia Championship champions
  • FIBA Asia Championship All-Star Mythical Five (1960)
• 1962 Asian Games champions
• 1963 FIBA Asia Championship champions
• 1967 FIBA Asia Championship champions, head coach
• 1968 Olympic Games, 13th place, head coach

Other achievements

• Philippine National Basketball Hall of Fame (1999)
• Philippine Sportswriter Association Athletes of the 20th Century award (2000)

Publications

• Bocobo, Christian and Celis, Beth, Legends and Heroes of Philippine Basketball, (Philippines, 2004)
• Dela Cruz, Juan, Book of Pinoy Facts and Records, (National Bookstore, Mandaluyong City, Philippines, 2004)

References

External links

• INQ7.net - Global Nation