Ercito Victolero, known as Chito Victolero (born November 29, 1975) in

Santa Maria, Bulacan Santa Maria ( , ), officially the Municipality of Santa Maria ( tgl, Bayan ng Santa Maria), is a 1st class municipality of the Philippines, municipality in the Philippine Province, province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, ...

, is a former Filipino professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player and current coach. He is currently the head coach of the

Magnolia Hotshots The Magnolia Chicken Timplados Hotshots, or simply known as the Magnolia Hotshots, are a professional basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association. The team is owned by San Miguel Food and Beverage, Inc., a subsidiary of San Migue ...

of the

Philippine Basketball Association The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is a men's professional basketball league in the Philippines composed of twelve company-branded franchised teams. Founded in 1975, it is the first professional basketball league in Asia and is the se ...

(PBA). He played in the PBA for the

Sta. Lucia Realtors The Sta. Lucia Realtors were a professional basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) from 1993 to 2010. Prior to joining the PBA, it played in the Philippine Basketball League (PBL) from 1987 to 1992. In 2015, a new Sta. ...

where he was drafted by the Realtors in the second round of the 2002 PBA draft as the 13th overall pick.

Early years

Victolero first played high school ball for the Sacred Heart Academy in Bulacan and later became a member of the Region III squad in the PRISAA. From there, he made it to the varsity squad and joined the Mapua Cardinals under coach

Joel Banal Joel Banal (born February 6, 1958) is a retired Filipino professional basketball player, and former head coach in the Philippine Basketball Association. He is the former commissioner of the now-defunct Pilipinas Commercial Basketball League (P ...

in 1992, a year after MIT had completed back-to-back title conquests in the senior division of the NCAA. He played in his first commercial ballclub in 1995 with the Stag Pale Pilsen in the

Philippine Basketball League The Philippine Basketball League (PBL) was a commercial semi-professional basketball league in the Philippines. The league was composed of several commercial teams with several collegiate and provincial stars. History The PBL was formed on Ma ...

under coach

Alfrancis Chua Alfrancis P. Chua (born January 17, 1966) is a Filipino sports executive and former basketball player and coach. He is currently the team manager of Barangay Ginebra San Miguel and the sports director of San Miguel Corporation (SMC), overseeing ...

and was a member of the Pilseners that won the historic grandslam in the PBL.

Professional career

After playing college basketball for Mapúa, Victorelo applied for the 2002 PBA draft where he was drafted thirteenth overall by the

. Before the 2005 Fiesta Conference, Victolero was signed by the

FedEx Express FedEx Express, a subsidiary of FedEx Corporation, is a major American cargo airline based in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. As of 2020, it is one of the world's largest airlines in terms of fleet size and freight tons flown. It is the name ...

where he played for one conference.

Coaching career

On April 2009, Victolero was hired by his alma mater, Mapúa, to be the head coach of the university's team, the

Mapúa Cardinals The Mapúa Cardinals are the varsity sports teams of Mapúa University that play in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (Philippines). The Mapúa Cardinals holds the NCAA record for the most General Championships in the seniors' divi ...

. However, Victorelo resigned from his post as head coach. According to a source, the Mapúa school administration was on the verge of firing Victolero because of the team's poor performances in the

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

. The school administration also elected not to renew Victorelo's expiring contract, but Victolero left his post before the school administration could inform him in a scheduled meeting. Before the 2014–15 PBA season, Victolero was hired by the

Kia Sorento The Kia Sorento ( ko, 기아 쏘렌토, translit=Gia Sorento) is a mid-size crossover SUV (formerly a body-on-frame SUV until 2009) produced since 2002 by South Korean manufacturer Kia. First generation (BL; 2002) 2002–2006 Debuted in ...

to be one of the team's assistant coaches. Kia Head coach

Manny Pacquiao Emmanuel Dapidran Pacquiao Sr. (; born December17, 1978) is a Filipino politician and former professional boxer. Nicknamed "PacMan", he is regarded as one of the greatest professional boxers of all time. He served as a Senator of the Philip ...

credited Victolero as one of the reasons for Kia's inspiring run for the franchise's first season. Before the 2016–17 PBA season, Victolero was hired by

Star Hotshots The Magnolia Chicken Timplados Hotshots, or simply known as the Magnolia Hotshots, are a professional basketball team in the Philippine Basketball Association. The team is owned by San Miguel Food and Beverage, Inc., a subsidiary of San Migu ...

to be their head coach.

Coaching record

Collegiate record

References

1975 births Living people Barako Bull Energy players Basketball players from Bulacan Filipino men's basketball coaches Filipino men's basketball players Mapúa Cardinals basketball players People from Santa Maria, Bulacan Point guards Sta. Lucia Realtors players Terrafirma Dyip coaches San Juan Knights players Sta. Lucia Realtors draft picks Magnolia Hotshots coaches Mapúa Cardinals basketball coaches {{Philippines-basketball-bio-stub