Davao Occidental Tigers, also known as Davao Occidental Tigers – Cocolife due to sponsorship reasons, are a Filipino professional basketball team based in the province of Davao Occidental. The team competes in the Pilipinas Super League (PSL).
Despite being based in Davao Occidental, the team hasn't played any home games within the province. Instead, the team plays in arenas across Davao Region, more specifically the Metro Davao area.
The Davao Occidental Tigers are one of the more successful home-and-away teams in the country, with four Finals appearances across both the MPBL and PSL. Of those four appearances, the Tigers won the 2021 MPBL Finals and the 2022 Pilipinas Super League Finals.
History
Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League
Davao Occidental Tigers were established in 2018 as an expansion team in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League. The Tigers were one of three teams to be based in Mindanao at the time, alongside General Santos and Zamboanga. The team led by Mark Yee saw immediate success, clinching the South Division's top seed with a 20–5 record.
In the playoffs, Tigers swept Cebu City in the First Round, as well as Bacoor City in the Division Semifinals. In the South Division Finals, they met the defending champion Batangas City Athletics. Although Batangas City forced a game 3 in overtime, the series was won by Davao Occidental and they faced San Juan Knights in the 2019 MPBL Finals. The series went back-and-forth with both teams alternating wins, all coming down to a winner-take-all game in Davao City. Tigers led by three points heading into the last minute, however, Jhonard Clarito scored four consecutive points for San Juan as Davao Occidental lost the game and the series by a single point.
Looking to come back after a stunning Finals loss, Davao Occidental kept the same core heading into the 2019–20 season. Once again the team clinched the top seed in the South Division with a record of 26–4. This made Davao Occidental Tigers the first, and currently only, MPBL team to clinch the best division record in back-to-back seasons.
To begin their 2020 playoff campaign, Tigers first beat Bicol in three games. They then met Zamboanga in the Division Semifinals, with the first game ending up as the lowest-scoring in the MPBL history. Davao Occidental then matched up with Basilan in the South Division Finals. With the series tied 1–1, it saw an abrupt ending following the suspension of the playoffs due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines. When the playoffs continued the following year, multiple Basilan members were tested positive for the virus, thus the series was awarded to Davao Occidental, creating a Finals rematch against San Juan. Davao Occidental got their revenge and won the series in four games, thus winning their first league championship in franchise history.
FilBasket
Following their MPBL championship run, Davao Occidental Tigers took part in the inaugural tournament of FilBasket, the 2021 Subic Championship.[3] The team clinched second place in the elimination round with a 7–3 record. After winning against Burlington EOG in the quarterfinals, Tigers experienced déjà vu when they lost to San Juan in the semifinals by a single point.
Pilipinas Super League
In 2021, the team became a founding member of the Pilipinas Super League, formally moving from the MPBL. Much like their MPBL debut, the lead the PSL with the best record in the 2022 Pearl of the Orient Cup, finishing 13–1.[4] The team then swept both Basilan and Cagayan de Oro on their way to the first PSL championship. In the following 2022–23 DUMPER Cup, Davao Occidental remained among the best teams with the second-best record of the elimination round. The team did suffer losses against Boracay and the Pampanga Royce, before ultimately meeting the Pampanga G Lanterns led by Justine Baltazar. Davao Occidental ended up getting swept as the Lanterns won their first league championship.
