ASIAN GAMES: PH women’s 3x3 basketball team eyes Asian Games quarterfinals

The Philippines swept its Group C assignments on Tuesday in the 20th Asian Games women's 3x3 basketball at the Kinjo Futo Station Square in Nagoya, Japan.

Kacey Dela Rosa overcame an early ankle injury as the Philippines defeated Mongolia, 17-12, and Macau, 21-4.

Dela Rosa shook off a right-ankle sprain suffered just two minutes into the opening game and returned to dominate inside, finishing with 10 points and three rebounds.

"It (injury) is not an excuse para mag-stop sa paglaban (to give up). I came back, and we got the win," the 22-year-old Dela Rosa said in an interview with One Sports.

"I saw my team and the opponents were up already; that’s when it clicked that they needed me inside. So, I tied my shoes and went back in," added the Ateneo standout, a member of the gold medal-winning 3x3 team at the 2025 Southeast Asian Games.

Kennan Ka added three points, while Amyah Espanol and Victoria Pasilang contributed two apiece.

"Mongolia is one of the top teams in the world... And the first game's always the hardest, but we were able to really manage good possessions, especially when Kacey was down. We made really good stops to get the victory," coach Eric Altamirano said.

The Gilas Women will shoot for the No. 1 seed and an outright quarterfinal slot on Wednesday against fellow unbeaten Malaysia at 5:05 p.m.

In the men's division, the Philippines eyes a sweep of Pool A against Kazakhstan at 12:15 p.m. to reach the quarterfinals.

The Philippines is coming off a 2-0 start after beating Asian no. 1 Mongolia, 19-12; and Sri Lanka, 21-12.

Nic Cabañero, playing for the Binan Tatak Gel in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League, scored seven points against Mongolia. He had eight points against Sri Lanka.

UST's Koji Buenaflor and La Salle's Luis Pablo also helped, but the Filipinos’ defensive pressure has enabled them to dictate the tempo in both games.

As of Sept. 21, the Philippines is No. 20 in FIBA men’s 3x3 rankings. China is at No. 5 and Japan at No. 12.

-PNA / Jean Malanum