SGA faces tall odds after big win falls short of target

SGA-Philippines during a game against South Korea’s Wonju DB Promy in the William Jones Cup.–SGA PHOTO

TAIWAN—Strong Group Athletics-Philippines won big Wednesday, but not quite big enough.

The Philippine side hammered South Korea’s Wonju DB Promy, 113-87, for its fourth straight victory in the 2026 William Jones Cup, but a “bad” tournament format left its bid for a third consecutive championship hanging by a thread.

SGA improved to 4-1 in Group A, tied with Wonju, but needed to win by 32 points to erase the quotient disadvantage created by its 110-79 loss to the Korean club on opening day.

Strong Group came agonizingly close.

It led by as many as 28 points, 95-67, in the second half before Wonju trimmed the final margin to 26 behind Filipino import Ethan Alvano, who poured in 37 points with seven assists and five rebounds.

“This one really hurts. It’s rare to win a game and still feel disappointed,” Strong Group coach Charles Tiu said. “We were so close. We prepared well and really gave ourselves a chance to win, but the 32-point margin was just too much for us to overcome.”

Adding to Strong Group’s frustration was a tournament provision that teams were informed of only after arriving in Taiwan: Chinese Taipei Blue was allocated an automatic semifinal berth.

That left only the top team from the group with a path to the semifinals.

“Even the Korean coach was complaining about how bad the format of the tournament is,” Tiu said. “If only we knew from the start that this was the format, then for sure things would have been different.”

Strong Group gave itself every opportunity to beat the quotient, racing to a 26-17 first-quarter lead and stretching the gap to 20 before halftime. But big men Isaiah Piñeiro and Tajuan Agee fouled out down the stretch as the Philippine squad chased the required margin.

Matthew Wright drilled seven three-pointers and finished with 21 points, while Agee had 22 points and 14 rebounds.

SGA’s fate is now partly out of its hands. It must defeat Chinese Taipei Blue on Thursday and hope winless Japan upsets Wonju in the 3 p.m. game. Strong Group faces Taipei Blue at 7 p.m.—WITH A REPORT FROM ROMMEL FUERTES JR.