Loyzaga learned to play basketball in the neighborhood TERVALAC (Teresa Valenzuela Athletic Club) basketball courts in Teresa Street,
Santa Mesa,
Manila. It was in the very same TERVALAC court where he was discovered by
Gabby Fajardo, one of the Philippines' leading coaches of the time. Fajardo saw promise in Loyzaga and offered to train Loyzaga for his junior PRATRA (Philippine Relief and Trade Rehabilitation Administration) team. In 1949, Loyzaga quit high school to play for PRATRA, winning the
MICAA junior crown that year.
San Beda Red Lions Loyzaga wanted to enroll at
Letran, but backed out at the last minute when the coach gave him a cold shoulder. He was about to enroll at the
University of Santo Tomas, but this also did not materialize after Fely Fajardo (older brother of Gabby), coach of the
San Beda Red Lions, recruited him. In the NCAA cage wars for the coveted Zamora Trophy in the 1950s, San Beda lost its title bid when Loyzaga did not see action due to scholastic reasons.
YCO Painters Loyzaga joined the fabled
YCO Painters in 1954 after powering PRATRA, and its successor team, PRISCO (Price Stabilization Corporation), to the National Open championship in 1950 and 1953, respectively. He helped the Painters achieve a 49-game winning streak from 1954 to 1956, including several MICAA titles and ten straight National Open titles. Loyzaga took over as the Painters' head coach after retiring in 1964.
Philippine men's basketball team Loyzaga was a two-time Olympian -
1952 (9th place) and
1956 (7th place) - as a member of the
Philippines men's national basketball team. He helped the Philippines become one of the best in the world at the time, winning four consecutive
Asian Games gold medals (
1951,
1954,
1958,
1962) and two consecutive
FIBA Asia Championships (
1960,
1963). His finest moment was at the
1954 FIBA World Championship where he led the Philippines to a bronze finish. It was the best finish by an
Asian country and the Philippines have remained the only Asian medalist in the tournament. He finished as one of the tournament’s leading scorers with a 16.4 points-per-game average and was named in the
All-Tournament second team. ==Coaching career==