JACOB Cortez has joined an elite club of players who have achieved the rare feat of winning crowns in both the UAAP and the NCAA.
The second-generation star added another ring to his collection after La Salle's UAAP Season 88 crown - even further proof that the son of Mike Cortez is an absolute winner.
READ: Mike Cortez proud to see son Jacob step out of his shadow
Curiously, exactly two years last Wednesday was when the younger Cortez also won his first chip when he was still with San Beda in NCAA Season 99.
It's a short list consisting of only seven players who won two seniors championships in the two famed Manila leagues.
Evan Nelle was the most recent to achieve the honor prior to Cortez.
The now-Phoenix guard won with the Red Lions in his rookie year back in NCAA Season 94 in 2018 and capped off his collegiate career with another triumph for the Green Archers back in UAAP Season 86 in 2023.
Art dela Cruz was actually the first.
He suited up for Ateneo in UAAP Season 70 in 2010, winning the championship in his first year. That turned out to be the third of the Blue Eagles' five-peat under coach Norman Black.
Dela Cruz left Katipunan a year later and returned to his high school alma mater San Beda where he also became a part of its own dynastic run. In his time in Mendiola, he helped the Red Lions claim the NCAA Seasons 88 to 90 titles from 2012 to 2014 and was even named as the Finals MVP in NCAA Season 89 in 2013.
From UAAP to NCAA
William Navarro also did that, but in reverse as he was part of the San Beda team which was triumphant in NCAA Season 92 in 2016.
He left the den the following year and moved to Ateneo, where he became a pivotal part of the Blue Eagles' title teams in UAAP Seasons 81 and 82 in 2018 and 2019 to accomplish the three-peat.
Most famous of the bunch, of course, is Robert Bolick who won a championship in La Salle in his rookie year in UAAP Season 76 in 2013.
Not being utilized by the Green Archers, however, prompted the Ormoc native to change addresses and link up with the Red Lions, whom he powered to a three-peat in NCAA Seasons 92 to 94 from 2016 to 2018.
And this year, Cortez was not alone in achieving this milestone.
So did Bismarck Lina and RC Calimag when San Beda hoisted the NCAA Season 101 crown to become two-league champions, being previously part of the University of the Philippines team that ended its 36-year drought in UAAP Season 84 back in 2022.
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