The Bulacan Kuyas are a Filipino professional basketball team based in the province of Bulacan. The team competes in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) as a member of the league's North Division. They are one of five teams based in the Central Luzon region and play their home games at Bulacan Capitol Gymnasium in Malolos.
| Bulacan Kuyas | |
|---|---|
 2024 Bulacan Kuyas season | |
| Division | North Division |
| League | MPBL |
| Founded | 2017 |
| History | Bulacan Kuyas 2018–present |
| Arena | Bulacan Capitol Gymnasium |
| Location | Bulacan |
| Team colors | |
| Head coach | Jonathan Reyes |
The team was founded as one of the MPBL's charter teams in its inaugural season. They have also took part in the Chooks-to-Go Pilipinas 3x3.
History
editFounding
editThe Bulacan Kuyas are among the ten charter teams featured in the inaugural season of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League. They were also the champions of the pre-season tournament the league held prior to the season.[1] Throughout the 2018 season, the team played their home games at the Bulacan Capitol Gymnasium in Malolos. The team inked a partnership with the Ligo Sardines for the 2018 season.[2]
2018–2021: The Taganas era
editIn their first season, Bulacan were one of three teams with a 6-3 record and claimed the second seed with a tiebreaker on point differential. The team, however, would fall in an upset against the Panañaque Patriots in the Quarterfinals.
Entering the 2018–19 season, the team signed a deal with Mighty Sports to become the team's new major sponsor.[3][4] The team once again made the playoffs, but once again lost in the First Round to the Manila Stars. Then in the 2019–20 season, they made the playoffs for the third straight season, but lost to the Makati Super Crunch. After competing in the 2021 Invitational, the team opted out of the 2022 season.
2023–present: Return and sudden decline
editThe team would make a return in 2023. Since then, the team has failed to return to their amateur era form. After starting the 2023 season 6–4, the team went on to win only one out of their remaining 18 games to finish the season 7–21. In 2024, the Kuyas only won two games out of 28 and ended up as the worst team in the North Division that season.
Team identity
editThe team is named after former Bulacan First District Representative Jose Antonio Sy-Alvarado, whose nickname is "Kuya". He served as the team's owner and backer during its foundation.
During the team's first three seasons, it used a color scheme that primarily revolves around the color pink, with purple or blue-green as the secondary color. When the team returned in 2023, the primary color was switched to green.
Home venues
editMost of the Bulacan Kuyas' home games are played at the Bulacan Capitol Gymnasium alongside secondary venues Baliwag Star Arena and Malolos Sports and Convention Center. In 2023, the team played all of their home games at Baliwag Star Arena.
| Venue | Location | 2018 | 2018–19 | 2019–20 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bulacan Capitol Gymnasium | Malolos, Bulacan | DNP | |||||
| Malolos Sports and Convention Center | Malolos, Bulacan | ||||||
| Baliwag Star Arena | Baliwag, Bulacan |
Current roster
edit| Players | Coaches | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Updated as of: June 14, 2024 |
Head coaches
edit| # | Name | Term | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ogie Gumatay | 2018 | |
| 2 | Chris Baluyot | 2018 | |
| 3 | Britt Reroma | 2018–2019–2019 | |
| 4 | Kerwin McCoy | 2019–2021 | |
| 5 | Ralph Emerson Rivera | 2021 | |
| 6 | Alvin Grey | 2023 | |
| 7 | Jerry Codiñera | 2023 | |
| 8 | Joseph Mabagos | 2023 | |
| 9 | Jonathan Reyes | 2024 |
Notable players
editMPBL All-Star Day
edit
|
Pre-game event winners
|
PBA players
editSeason-by-season records
edit| League champions | |
| Division champions | |
| Qualified for playoffs | |
| Best regular season record |
| Season | Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Finish | GP | W | L | PCT | GB | Stage | Results | |
| Bulacan Kuyas | |||||||||
| 2018 Rajah Cup |
— | 2nd | 9 | 6 | 3 | .667 | 2 | Quarterfinals | lost vs. Parañaque, 1–2 |
| 2018–19 Datu Cup |
North | 5th | 25 | 14 | 11 | .560 | 9 | Division quarterfinals | lost vs. Manila, 0–2 |
| 2019–20 Lakan Season |
North | 6th | 30 | 19 | 11 | .633 | 7 | Division quarterfinals | lost vs. Makati, 0–2 |
| Did not participate in 2022 | |||||||||
| 2023 | North | 12th | 28 | 7 | 21 | .250 | 19 | Did not qualify | |
| 2024 | North | 14th | 28 | 2 | 26 | .071 | 24 | ||
| All-time regular season record | 120 | 48 | 72 | .500 | 3 playoff appearances | ||||
| All-time playoff record | 7 | 1 | 6 | .143 | 0 Finals appearances | ||||
| All-time overall record | 127 | 49 | 78 | .475 | 0 championships | ||||
References
edit- ^ "Bulacan, Quezon City prevail in MPBL". Manila Bulletin. February 1, 2018. Retrieved June 12, 2018.
- ^ "Bulacan Kuyas inks partnership with Ligo Sardines". Ligo Brand Philippines. January 24, 2018. Retrieved October 14, 2018.
- ^ "Mighty Sports back on mainstream cage scene via MPBL's Bulacan Kuyas". FOX Sports Philippines. June 17, 2018. Retrieved June 17, 2018.
- ^ "Might Sports Re-Emerges in the MPBL". Mighty Sports. June 18, 2018. Retrieved June 18, 2018.