NCAA Season 73 basketball tournaments

The 1997 NCAA basketball tournament was the 73rd season in the Philippine National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The season opened on August 2, 1997 at the Araneta Coliseum and ended on October 6, 1997 with the San Sebastian Stags winning their fifth straight championship in the Seniors division.

1997 NCAA season

Host school	San Sebastian College – Recoletos
Men's Finals G1 Wins  San Sebastian Stags 84 1+1  San Beda Red Lions 72 0
Duration	October 5, 1997
Arena(s)	Rizal Memorial Coliseum
Winning coach	Arturo Cristobal
TV network(s)	Vintage Sports (IBC)
Juniors' Finals G1 G2 Wins  San Beda Red Cubs 63 60 0  Mapua Red Robins 64 78 2
Duration	October 1997
Arena(s)	Rizal Memorial Coliseum
< Season 72 1997 Season 74 >

This was the first-ever final four semifinals. ^[1]

Men's tournament

Elimination round

Pos	Team	W	L	Pts	Qualification
1	San Sebastian Stags (H)	12	0	24	Twice-to-beat in the Finals[lower-alpha 1]
2	San Beda Red Lions	8	4	20	Proceed to stepladder round 2
3	Letran Knights	7	5	19[lower-alpha 2]	Proceed to stepladder round 1
4	Mapúa Cardinals	7	5	19[lower-alpha 2]
5	Perpetual Altas	6	6	18
6	JRC Heavy Bombers	2	10	14
7	PCU Dolphins (X)	0	12	12

Source: ^{[citation needed]}
(H) Hosts; (X) Under probation
Notes:

1. As San Sebastian won all of their elimination round games, the stepladder format will be used instead of the regular Final Four format.
2. Head-to-head record: Letran 2–0 Mapua

Bracket

	Stepladder round 1 (Single-elimination)					Stepladder round 2 (Single-elimination)					Finals (#1 has twice-to-beat advantage)
											1	San Sebastian	84
						2	San Beda	72			2	San Beda	72
	3	Letran	68			3	Letran	65
	4	Mapúa	57

Stepladder semifinals

Both rounds are straight knockout matches.

(3) Letran vs. (4) Mapúa

October 1

Letran Knights	68–57	Mapúa Cardinals
Letran advances to the 2nd round

Rizal Memorial Coliseum, Manila

Letran Knights beat Mapua Cardinals, 68–57, on October 1, in the first of two knockout matches to determine defending champion San Sebastian College's finals opponent. The Stags completed a 12-game elimination round sweep to automatically clinch the first finals slot. ^[2]

(2) San Beda vs. (3) Letran

October 3

San Beda Red Lions	72–65	Letran Knights
San Beda advances to the Finals

Rizal Memorial Coliseum, Manila

San Beda Red Lions finished second and drew a bye; they defeated Letran Knights two nights later, 72–65, and arranged a title clash with San Sebastian Stags. ^[3]

Finals

San Sebastian has the twice-to-beat advantage over San Beda, who only has to lose once to lose the series.

Game 1

October 5

San Sebastian Stags	84–72	San Beda Red Lions
San Sebastian wins series in one game

Rizal Memorial Coliseum, Manila

Stags' Rommel Adducul capped another MVP season with 20 points and 16 rebounds while Jasper Ocampo and Ulysses Tanique sparked the Stags' breakaway 25–7 run in the final 15 minutes. San Sebastian won their fifth consecutive title and the school's ninth NCAA crown. ^[4]

Awards

NCAA Season 73 men's basketball champions
San Sebastian Stags Ninth title, fifth consecutive title

Juniors' tournament

Playoffs

	Semifinals (Nos. 1 & 2 have twice-to-beat advantage)					Finals (Best-of-three series)
	1	San Beda	91
	4	San Sebastian	72
						1	San Beda	63	60
						2	Mapúa	64	78
	2	Mapúa	77
	3	PCU	67

References

1. "Red Lions nip Cards for NCAA 'Final 4'". Manila Standard.
2. "Knights sideline Cardinals". Manila Standard.
3. "It's the Lions vs Stags for title". Manila Standard.
4. "Stags herd Lions for fifth straight 'NC' crown". Manila Standard.

Preceded by Season 72 (1996)	NCAA basketball seasons Season 73 (1997)	Succeeded by Season 74 (1998)