Richard Anthony "Richie" Ticzon (born September 8, 1971 in Pasig) is a Filipino former professional basketball player and coach. Nicknamed The Velvet Touch for his outside shooting, Ticzon played college ball at the

Ateneo de Manila University , mottoeng = Light in the Lord , type = Private, research, non-profit, coeducational basic and higher education institution , established = December 10, 1859 , religious_affiliation = Roman Catholic (Jesuits) , academic_aff ...

Playing career

He was selected fourth overall by Pepsi Mega in the

1994 PBA draft The 1994 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) rookie draft was an event at which teams drafted players from the amateur ranks. It was held on January 16, 1994, at the Crystal Ballroom of the Hyatt Hotel in Manila. Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 ...

. Ticzon was immediately traded to Purefoods along with second round picks in 1995 and 1996 for

Dindo Pumaren Ferdinand "Dindo" Pumaren, is a retired Filipino professional basketball player and former collegiate coach. In his professional playing career, he was nicknamed "The Bullet" due to his great passing and stealing. Early career Pumaren suited ...

and Dwight Lago. At Purefoods, he was reunited with his Ateneo coach,

Chot Reyes Vincent "Chot" P. Reyes (born August 1, 1963) is a Filipino basketball head coach for the TNT Tropang Giga for the Philippine Basketball Association. He is also the head coach of the Philippine national basketball team, where he led the team to a ...

. He showed his worth during the Commissioner's Cup finals against Alaska Milkmen by banging in treys propelling Purefoods' late rallies and finishing kicks. Beginning the 1996 season, Ticzon had trouble finding a team at the start of the year before hooking up with Shell in what could easily be the comeback story of the year. He went on to star in the team's surprise finals stint in the Commissioner's Cup, scoring a triple that tied the count with 10.5 seconds to go in the knockout game against Ginebra San Miguel and his game-winning fadeaway jumper late in Game Six of the finals against Alaska was one of the year's highlight plays. The comeback kid of the 1996 season made the most prolific season of his pro career as a starter for coach

Chito Narvasa Andres "Chito" Yuseco Narvasa, Jr. (born October 18, 1956) is a Filipino business executive and former basketball player and coach. He is best known as the ninth commissioner of the Philippine Basketball Association. Personal life He is the son o ...

. With veteran

Gerry Esplana Gerald "Gerry" Esplana is a former Filipino basketball player, politician and coach. He was nicknamed "Mr. Cool" and "The Plan" while playing professionally. He played for Presto Tivoli (when he won PBA Rookie of the Year), Sta. Lucia Realto ...

arriving in the 1998 season following a trade, Richie's minutes on the playing court suffered a decline. In 1999, the former Ateneo scoring machine has gotten his release to play in the

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

via the Cagayan de Oro Amigos. He was then signed up by the Alaska Aces in 2001.

Coaching career

Ticzon would later turn to coaching after his playing years were over. He became an assistant coach at FEU, and would later serve as assistant to coach

Junel Baculi Edmundo "Junel" Baculi is a Filipino head basketball coach who formerly coached GlobalPort Batang Pier in the PBA. In the PBL, he also coached the Hapee-PCU Dolphins and had many titles. Prior to coaching, Baculi played varsity basketball for t ...

at GlobalPort. Despite his lack of head coaching experience, team owner

Mikee Romero Michael Odylon "Mikee" Lagman Romero (; born March 21, 1972) is a Filipino businessman, politician, and polo player who previously served as a House Deputy Speaker from 2019 to 2022, except for a 12-day period out of office in October 2020 du ...

installed him as the interim head coach for the Batang Pier after the team fired Baculi just a week before the start of the 2013-14 PBA season. In his only conference with the team, he compiled a 5-9 win–loss record and helped them reach the All-Filipino Conference quarterfinals as a seventh-seed team. He was then replaced by

Pido Jarencio Alfredo Lorenzo Mendoza Jarencio (born September 5, 1964) is a Filipino basketball coach and former professional basketball player who is the head coach for the NorthPort Batang Pier of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He was the h ...

before the start of the next conference.

PBA

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ticzon, Richie Living people Filipino men's basketball players Filipino men's basketball coaches Ateneo Blue Eagles men's basketball players 1971 births People from Pasig Basketball players from Metro Manila Point guards Magnolia Hotshots players Shell Turbo Chargers players Alaska Aces (PBA) players San Miguel Beermen coaches TNT Tropang Giga draft picks NorthPort Batang Pier coaches FEU Tamaraws basketball coaches