Haydee Ong is a Filipino basketball coach and former player who is the head coach of the UST Growling Tigresses women's basketball team. She was the head coach of the

Philippines women's national basketball team The Philippines women's national basketball team is managed by the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP). Compared to the men's national team, the women's national team receives less reception from local basketball enthusiasts. Locally based ...

from 2008 to 2014. In October 2024, she was named the inaugural commissioner for the upcoming

Women's Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League The Women's Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (WMPBL) is a women's professional basketball league in the Philippines consisting of fourteen teams. It serves as the women's counterpart of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL). T ...

(WMPBL).

Early life and education

Ong was inspired to play basketball from his father who was a varsity player while her mother initially opposed to the idea of her doing something that is considered as a "men's sport". Haydee Ong later attended the

University of Santo Tomas The University of Santo Tomas (UST; ), officially the Pontifical and Royal University of Santo Tomas, The Catholic University of the Philippines or colloquially as ''Ustê'' (), is a Private university, private Catholic school, Catholic researc ...

for her collegiate studies under an athletic scholarship. After graduating, she worked as a pharmacist for two years before getting involved in basketball again.

Competitive career

As a player for the

from 1987 to 1990, Haydee Ong helped her college win four straight championships at the

UAAP The University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP), established in 1938, is an athletic association of eight Metro Manila universities in the Philippines. The eight-member schools are Adamson University (AdU), Ateneo de Manila Univer ...

. Ong also played for the Philippine women's national team from 1986 to 1993.

Coaching career

National team

Ong joined the coaching staff of the Philippine women's national team in 1996 and was appointed as head coach of the national team in 2008, replacing Fritz Gatson. The national team under her mentorship also participated in the defunct Women's Philippine Basketball League. The national team won its first gold medal in a regional tournament at the 2010 SEABA Championship for Women under Ong's watch. The national team also won silver at the

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

and

2013 Southeast Asian Games The 2013 Southeast Asian Games (, ), officially known as the 27th Southeast Asian Games, or the 27th SEA Games, and commonly known as Naypyitaw 2013, were a Southeast Asian multi-sport event took place in Naypyidaw, Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar from 11 ...

. Her national team coaching stint ended in 2014.

Patrick Aquino Patrick Henry Aquino (born May 30, 1971) is a Filipino basketball coach who serves as the head coach of the Philippines women's national basketball team, he has been appointed by the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas since December 2014 when the te ...

succeeded her as coach of the national team in 2015.

Collegiate

Ong has coached the

Ateneo Lady Eagles The Ateneo Blue Eagles are the collegiate varsity teams of the Ateneo de Manila University that play in the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP), the premiere collegiate league in the Philippines. The Ateneo collegiate me ...

of the

for seven years. She coaches the women's varsity team of

Enderun Colleges Enderun Colleges is a private non-sectarian undergraduate college situated at the Bonifacio Global City in Taguig, Metro Manila, Philippines. It was established in 2005, then in its former campus in Wynsum Corporate Plaza in Ortigas Center. ...

. She led Enderun on their first

National Athletic Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities The National Athletic Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities (NAASCU) is an athletic association of colleges and universities in the Philippines. It was established in 2001. NAASCU sports are men's, women's and junior's basketball, men ...

(NAASCU) stint in 2016 where they managed to become champions by beating

Rizal Technological University Rizal Technological University (RTU) is a state university based in the National Capital Region of the Philippines, with its main campus in Mandaluyong City and a branch in Pasig City. It was established on July 11, 1969, as the College of Ri ...

in their final game. Ong was also named as Coach of the Year for the 2016 season. In 2016, Ong began coaching the women's team of her alma mater, the University of Santo Tomas at

UAAP Season 79 UAAP Season 79 (also known as UAAP LXXIX) is the 2016–2017 athletic year of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP). This season, hosted by the University of Santo Tomas officially opened on September 3, 2016. The opening ...

. The UST Tigresses under Ong ended the NU Lady Bulldogs's championship streak in 2023, in the finals of Season 86

Sports management

She is the athletic director of Immaculate Conception Academy High School in Greenhills. In October 2023, Ong was reportedly named as the first commissioner of the

(WMPBL). She oversaw the launch of the 2025 regular season of the WMPBL as a professional league.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ong, Haydee Filipino women's basketball coaches UST Tigresses basketball players Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Philippines women's national basketball team coaches