SGA-PH Jones Cup title chances stay alive but slim despite Wonju romp

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

MANILA, Philippines—Strong Group Athletics-Philippines racked up its fourth straight win after dispatching Wonju DB Promy, 113-87, in the 2026 Williams Jones Cup at Xinzhuang Gymnasium in New Taipei City.

But even with the lopsided win that tied SGA with Wonju at 4-1 in Group A, the Philippine side still fell short of its target to overcome the Korean Basketball League club’s edge in quotient, putting its three-peat bid in doubt.

“This one really hurts. It’s rare to win a game and still feel disappointed. 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. I can’t sing enough praises for our team and the way we fought in this game. We played some really good basketball,” said Strong Group coach Charles Tiu, whose squad avenged a 110-79 opening loss to Wonju.

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

The organizers of the 45th edition of the Jones Cup allocated an automatic semifinal spot to Chinese Taipei Blue, a provision that was only revealed to the participating teams upon their arrival in Taiwan. Chinese Taipei Blue currently holds a 1-3 record.

As a result, SGA’s Final Four fate is out of its control. To make the semifinals, the Philippine side will hope for winless Japan to upset Wonju DB on Thursday coupled with a victory over Chinese Taipei Blue.

Matthew Wright finished with 21 points on 7-of-11 shooting from long range as he tried desperately to further extend SGA’s lead late.

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DB Promy’s Filipino-American guard Ethan Alvano, however, made sure to keep SGA away from reaching its goal with a big fourth quarter to finish with a game-high 37 points.

It also didn’t help SGA that big men Isaiah Piñeiro and Tajuan Agee fouled out down the stretch.

Agee had with 22 points and 14 rebounds, while Ian Miller added 19 points. Former NBA veteran Boban Marjanovic chipped in 10 points, while DJ Fenner and Fil-American guard Remy Martin contributed 16 and 12 points, respectively.

“We’ve lost one game in three years, and deep down, we know we are the best team in the tournament,” said Tiu. “We needed a miracle, and we came very close. Proud of the effort.”