Men's collegiate basketball in particular, and intercollegiate athletics in general is fragmented in the Philippines.
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (Philippines) and University Athletic Association of the Philippines are the leagues that receive the most attention, owing to their national television coverage, with the UAAP in particular described as the country's "premier and more popular league".
For 13 out of 21 seasons, champions from either the PCCL or Filoil have gone on to win the championship in their respective home leagues.
The makeup of both collegiate leagues was finalized in 1980 with the last remnants of the founding NCAA members leaving for the UAAP in Ateneo (left NCAA and joined UAAP in 1978) and La Salle (left NCAA in 1980, joined UAAP in 1986), along with San Beda, who returned to the NCAA after a short hiatus in 1984.
The UAAP adopted the Final Four format in 1993 while the NCAA followed suit in 1997.