UAAP Season 88 basketball tournaments are the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) basketball tournaments for its 88th season. The University of Santo Tomas (UST) are the season hosts, with the opening ceremony held at the University of Santo Tomas Field on September 19, 2025. The collegiate men's and high school men's tournament started on September 20 while the collegiate women's tournament started on September 24.
Starting this season, the high school division tournaments were rebranded into "16U tournament" from last season's junior high school tournament, while the boys' and girls' tournaments were rebranded into "19U boys' tournament" and "19U girls' tournament", respectively.
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.
Former Ateneo varsity player Jai Reyes has been named commissioner, with Jong Uichico as consultant, and Dino Lee, Mikko Abello and Ginny Velarde as deputy commissioners.
The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) requested the UAAP to allow their players to apply for the PBA season 50 draft while the UAAP season is ongoing. The UAAP rejected the PBA's request, citing the need to consistently apply their eligibility rules across all events, not just men's basketball.
The UAAP rebranded the Mythical Five award (in basketball) as the "Elite Team" across all sports.
This season, the UAAP introduced a tiered system for compensation for its referees. Referees officiating men's tournaments matches get per game, for boys' tournaments matches and for girls' and women's tournaments matches. In the previous season, referees are paid per game regardless of tournament. This caused backlash insisting that pay either should be equal or the female tournaments should have not been reduced. Reyes argued that referees in the men's tournaments have to contend with faster pace of play for men's games, justifying higher compensation.
Women's tournaments participants such as coaches and players said that they were offended by the UAAP's actions By October 22, the UAAP's commissioner's office revised the referees' compensation, basing it on the referees' status, instead of the tournament, with pay not based on the sex of the participants of the game that is being officiated.
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.
The University of Santo Tomas Field in Manila will host the opening ceremonies. The main venue for the basketball tournament are the SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City and Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City. Due to Metro Manila hosting the 2025 FIVB Men's Volleyball World Championship, several venues are unavailable during the first week, forcing UST to host games at the on-campus Quadricentennial Pavilion and Blue Eagle Gym.
The UAAP's return to the newly-renovated Blue Eagle Gym is its first after 20 years for the men's tournament and 6 years for the women's tournament.
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 next 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".
The tournament began on September 20, 2025 with Ateneo defeating FEU in overtime, and ended on December 17, 2025.
The UAAP postponed the November 9 games due to the predicted effects of Typhoon Uwan (Fung-wong).The games were rescheduled on November 26.
<section begin="Men's standings" /><section end="Men's standings" />
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.
<section begin="Men's playoffs" /><section end="Men's playoffs" />
The top two seeds have the twice-to-beat advantage where they have to win just once, while their opponents twice, to progress.
The NU Bulldogs become the first team to clinch a semifinals berth after their victory against Adamson. They then clinched the twice-to-beat advantage with their win against UE. UP's loss to La Salle gave the #1 seed to NU. La Salle's elimination round finale win against Ateneo gave them the #4 seed.
The UP Fighting Maroons clinched the semifinal berth after winning against Adamson. With UP's loss to La Salle, they settled for the #2 seed. The UST Growling Tigers clinched a Final Four berth after winning against top-seeded NU. UST clinched the #3 seed after La Salle's defeat of Ateneo in the elimination round finale.
The finals is a best-of-three playoff.
The UP Fighting Maroons clinched their fifth consecutive Finals berth after winning against UST. Meanwhile, the De La Salle Green Archers clinched their third consecutive Finals berth. This is the third consecutive time La Salle and UP met in the finals.
La Salle won against UP to claim the championship.
The end-of-season awards were handed out prior to game 2 of the finals at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
The Collegiate Press Corps awards a "player of the week" throughout the season:
FEU's Janrey Pasaol topped the statistical points race after the elimination round.
The tournament started on September 24 with UP winning over Adamson. And ended on December 14, 2025.
The UAAP postponed the November 9 games due to the predicted effects of Typhoon Uwan (Fung-wong). These games were then rescheduled to November 26.
<section begin="Women's standings" /><section end="Women's standings" />
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.
<section begin="Women's playoffs" /><section end="Women's playoffs"></section>
Adamson and Ateneo qualified to the stepladder quarterfinals.
NU awaits the winner of Ateneo vs. Adamson playoff.
The finals is a best-of-three playoff.
The UST Growling Tigresses, by virtue of winning all 14 elimination round games, qualified to their third consecutive finals. The NU Lady Bulldogs, for their part, clinched their 11th consecutive finals berth, and will face the Tigresses for the third consecutive finals.
The end-of-season awards were handed out prior to game 2 of the finals at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.
The Collegiate Press Corps awards a "player of the week" throughout the season:
The 19U boys' tournament started on January 11, 2026, with Ateneo defeating UE.
<section begin="19U boys' standings" /> <section end="19U boys' standings" />
Results on top and to the right of the grey cells are for first-round games; those to the bottom and to the left of it are second-round games.
<section begin="Boys' playoffs" /><section end="Boys' playoffs" />
The 19U girls' tournament started on January 11, 2026, with NUNS defeating Ateneo.
<section begin="19U girls' standings" /><section end="19U girls' standings" />
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.
The tournament began on September 20, 2025 with FEU Diliman defeating Ateneo.
The UAAP postponed the November 9 games due to the predicted effects of Typhoon Uwan (Fung-wong).
<section begin="16U standings" /><section end="16U standings" />
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.
<section begin="16U playoffs"></section><section end="16U playoffs"></section>
The stepladder playoffs are sudden-death games.
FEU Diliman secured a semifinals berth after their win over DLSZ. Adamson's victory against UE clinched the playoffs berth for the former, and eliminated the latter. Adamson qualified to the stepladder quarterfinals. FEU's defeat by UST in their elimination round finale relegated them to the stepladder quarterfinals.
UST clinched a semifinals berth after winning against Ateneo. The Tiger Cubs clinched the #2 seed with their defeat of FEU Diliman in the elimination round finale.
The finals is a best-of-three playoff.
The NUNS Bullpups were the first team to clinch a semifinals berth after their win against the Adamson Baby Falcons. They then clinched the twice-to-beat advantage after winning against FEU Diliman. After winning all elimination round games, including the finale against UST, the Bullpups clinched an outright finals berth. The FEU Diliman Baby Tamaraws qualified to its first 16U finals after defeating previous season's finalists UST.
The end-of-season awards were handed out prior to game 2 of the finals at the SM Mall of Asia Arena.