Seven days. Two historic milestones. The Gilas Women 3×3 team is not done making history.
A week after claiming a silver medal at the FIBA 3×3 Asia Cup in Singapore—the best finish ever by a Philippine team at the continental tournament—the Filipinas punched their ticket to the FIBA 3×3 World Cup in Warsaw, Poland this June, securing qualification yesterday with a dominant 21-10 victory over host Singapore.
Gilas Women Leave No Doubt
The win was never in doubt. Unlike their Pool B encounter the day before, a tense 21–19 escape against the same Singaporeans, this one was controlled from start to finish. Gilas Women left nothing to chance, joining Hungary and Lithuania as the early qualifiers from the tournament.
Kacey Dela Rosa was again the offensive engine, finishing with 11 points—the same output she had put up against Singapore in Pool B play. The consistency from the rising star is becoming a pattern, and a reliable one.
Fittingly, Afril Bernardino Clinches World Cup Berth
The clinching moment came from the veteran. Afril Bernardino—who had already been one of the defining figures of the Asia Cup run—stepped to the line and drained both free throws to ice the game and seal the qualification.
“We’re proud of getting one of the slots to the FIBA Worlds,” Bernardino said.
The result sends the Philippines to the FIBA 3×3 World Cup for just the second time—the first since the country hosted the event in 2018. That eight-year gap makes this qualification all the more meaningful. Philippine 3×3 women’s basketball has been building steadily on the international stage, and in the span of seven days in Singapore, it announced itself to the rest of the world in the clearest terms possible.
Silver at the Asia Cup. A World Cup berth. One week. What a run for Gilas Women.
