In the early years of the UAAP, the NU Bulldogs were a competitive team in the league, winning a title
in 1954. The Bulldogs were coached by Skip Guinto, who was approached by the Jhocsons, owners of NU, to coach their team. The Bulldogs relied on
Antonio Villamor to defeat the
FEU Tamaraws to win their first title. The Bulldogs then produced players such as
Narciso Bernardo and
Jun Papa, but never came close to a repeat Finals appearance, until Reynaldo Sigua was acquired by NU. Sigua led the Bulldogs to a Finals appearance in 1970 against the
UE Red Warriors. The Red Warriors prevailed, winning their sixth consecutive UAAP title. In the last quarter of year 2008, the family of
Henry Sy of
SM Prime Holdings acquired majority ownership of the National University. Aside from improving school facilities, the new management has included in their corporate plan the improvement of NU's sports programs. After ten years, the National U Bulldogs made it again to the UAAP Final Four in 2012.
UAAP Season 77 At the start of
UAAP Season 77, the NU Bulldogs were predicted to lose some ground in the standings due to the losses of key players like former UAAP MVP
Ray Parks and foreign student athlete Emmanuel Mbe, but was still expected to compete due to the emergence of players like
Troy Rosario,
Gelo Alolino and
Glenn Khobuntin. In the 2nd round of the tournament, the Bulldogs fell to the 4th spot in the standings. tied with the
UE Red Warriors. They faced UE again in a knockout game for the 4th seed, which they won 51–49. They then defeated the 1st seed
Ateneo Blue Eagles twice in the Final Four tournament (as Ateneo had a twice-to-beat advantage, due to their high seed), making them the 2nd number 4 seeded team in UAAP history to defeat a number 1 seeded team, as well as their first trip to the UAAP Finals since 1970. In the
UAAP Season 77 Finals, the Bulldogs faced the
FEU Tamaraws in three games, where they finally clinched the championship after winning Game 3, 75–59. This marked the
NU Bulldogs' first UAAP Men's basketball championship win in 60 years. ==Roster==