Gilas Men and Women ended what looked like a promising 3×3 campaign in the 20th Asian Games with heartbreaking losses, with the former missing out on a podium finish and the latter settling for silver.
Gilas Women Falter Versus Japan
An improbable march to gold ended on a whimper for the Philippines as Kacey Dela Rosa and company ran into a buzzsaw that was Japan, losing 21‑11 at the Kinjo Futo Station Square Venue on Friday evening.
Japan started off hitting back‑to‑back deuces to take an early 5‑2 lead, then extended it to 9‑4 on another two‑pointer. The hosts were still ahead, 12‑6, when Kacey Dela Rosa tried to get the Philippines back into the game, powering her way inside on two straight possessions to cut Japan’s lead to 12‑8.
Another deuce by Japan stopped Gilas Women’s brewing momentum and seemed to take the air out of the Philippines, who later gave up three more two‑pointers to the eventual gold medalists.
Japan’s long‑distance sniping spelled the difference as they shot 7‑for‑16 from two‑point range compared to the Philippines’ 0‑for‑5. Crucially, the Japanese seemed to hit deuces every time the Philippines were looking to make a move, stopping momentum right away and swinging it back to Japan.
Kacey Dela Rosa Leads Historic Silver
Dela Rosa finished with 6 points and 3 rebounds as she tried to tow the Philippines to a gold‑medal stunner. Amyah Espanol and Kennan Ka added 3 and 2 points, respectively. Victoria Pasilang went scoreless but did have 4 rebounds. Yuki Hirashita and Sakura Horiuchi led Japan with 9 and 8 points, respectively, with each firing three deuces. Fatoumanana Nishi and Haruka Yamamoto added 2 apiece.
Despite the loss, the silver medal marked the Philippines’ best‑ever finish in 3×3 basketball at the quadrennial showpiece, highlighted by a dominant run in pool play that included wins over Mongolia, Macao, and Malaysia. The Philippines then cruised past Singapore, 22‑12, in the quarterfinals and outlasted Thailand, 13‑8, to advance to the final.
Gilas Men Miss Out on the Podium
Meanwhile, Gilas Men’s own impressive run in 3×3 basketball also ended in heartbreak as Nic Cabañero, Koji Buenaflor, Doy Dungo, and Luis Pablo lost to Iran in the battle for bronze.
The Filipinos were just down 7‑5 past the eight‑minute mark when the Iranians unleashed five straight points to take a 12‑5 advantage. A Cabañero drive with 4:25 left in the game inched the Philippines to within 13‑9, but it was the closest they would get as Iran finished off with an 8‑2 wind‑up to clinch the bronze.
Like their female counterparts, Gilas Men swept pool play with wins over Mongolia, Kazakhstan, and Sri Lanka. They then stunned defending champions Chinese Taipei before losing to South Korea in the semis and Iran in the bronze‑medal match.
