Coach asks for prayers as weightlifter Albert Ian Delos Santos competes in Asian Games

MANILA, Philippines — Bataan turned hot in the third quarter and beat Pasig City, 83-75, to book a playoff seat in the North Division of the SportsPlus MPBL (Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League) 2026 Season at the Camaya Events Play Center in Mariveles, Bataan. Trailing by as many as 11 points and still behind, 45-48, the Bataan Risers poured in 15 points while holding the Pasiguenos to just two to wrest control, 60-52, till the end. The Risers emerged as the seventh seed and will tackle the San Juan Knights, the No. 2 qualifiers, in the best-of-three quarterfinal playoffs. Joshua Galleno, a 6-foot-2 find from Olivarez College in Paranaque, posted 17 points, 4 rebounds and 3 steals to clinch the SportsPlus best player honors over Migs Corteza, a 6-foot-4 former College of St. Benilde Blazer, who contributed 18 points and 7 rebounds. Other Risers who delivered for Coach Myk Saguiguit were Nino Ibanez with 15 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists; Hubert Cani, with 8 points, 5 rebounds and 2 assists; and homegrown Yves Sazon, with 6 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists. Pasig, which surged ahead, 31-20, drew 21 points, 12 rebounds and 2 assists from Joshua Galicia; 17 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists from Joshua Corpuz; and 14 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists from Warlo Batac. The Risers ruled the boards, 56-48, and exploited this advantage to outscore the Pasiguenos in the paint, 50-30. Pasig tumbled to a knockout match with Quezon City, which bested Valenzuela City, 76-71, in the first game for the eighth and last playoff slot in the North. The Quezon City Black Bulls held the Valenzuela Darkhorse to two points in the last 5 minutes and 3 seconds and came through with eight, the last three on free throws by Ryan Costelo, to extend their campaign this year Costelo pooled 13 points, 9 assists and 2 rebounds and was named the best player over Kobe Monje, who tallied a game-high 23 points and 7 rebounds. MJ Joson also shone for Quezon City with 11 points, 9 rebounds and 2 steals, followed by Jessie Sumoda, who tallied 10 points and 8 rebounds, despite getting blocked twice by Valenzuela's Lester Reyes down the stretch. Valenzuela cut short its stint this year despite Jay Collado's 15-point, 11-rebound, 4-assist effort, CJ Alattica's 15-point, 7-rebound and 2-assist output, and Geremy Robinson's 14 points, 11 rebounds and 6 assists. Reyes finished with 12 points, 7 rebounds and 2 assists for Valenzuela, which paid dearly for its dismal free-throw shooting, converting only 8 of 23 for 34.8 percent. The tournament plays at the Calapan City Coliseum for the first time on Monday, featuring the South Division play-in games between Zamboanga and Imus at 5 p.m., and Basilan and Mindoro at 7 p.m. The Mindoro-Basilan winner advances to the playoffs as the seventh qualifier, while the loser drops to a knockout match with the winner of the Zamboanga-Imus tussle. TMT

MANILA, Philippines — Model-influencer Chloe San Jose was once again in the stands to cheer on Carlos Yulo as he achieved a historic double-gold sweep at the 2026 Asian Games, following his iconic double-gold victory at the 2024 Paris Olympics.  After claiming the Philippines’ first gold on the floor exercise, Yulo dominated the vault competition with an average score of 14.599 points at the Nagoya City General Gymnasium (Rainbow Hall). San Jose shared giddily through the Philippine Olympic Committee that during his vault warm-up, she managed to catch his eye from the crowd and blew him a flying kiss.  She explained that while seating positions vary, she never misses an opportunity to offer her loving support whenever their eyes meet while he is on the field of play. Overwhelmed with emotion and immense pride following his wins, the supportive partner reflected on their journey together, attributing their success to faith and perseverance through every challenge they faced.  The couple first connected in April 2020 when San Jose reached out as a fan on social media, officially dating two months later before finally meeting in person at the 31st Southeast Asian Games in May 2022.

Follow along to Team Philippines campaign in the 2026 Asian Games for September 26, 2026.

MANILA, Philippines – A heavy 8-game schedule marks the start of the men’s volleyball competition on Sunday with Alas Pilipinas Men hoping for an encouraging start to their campaign at the Aichi-Nagoya 20th Asian Games. But it won’t be easy, as Alas Men clash with perennial contender South Korea in one of the three games scheduled at Park Arena Komaki at 1 p.m. After the arrival of versatile setter Ave Joshua “Owa” Retamar from Europe on Friday , where he plays for Ordu Sports Club  in Azerbaijan, the team looks inspired and ready to rumble against the Koreans. “Okay naman sila sa ngayon, we are hoping maging maganda ang resulta ng laro namin bukas kahit ngayon lang maging complete,” said team manager Ronwald Dimaculangan, who is the coach of the team of University of the East in the UAAP.  Though Retamar has had only a day to practice with the team, chemistry will not be much of a problem since he knows his teammates very well, having played together during the 2025 FIVB World Championships in Manila Out to play key roles for the team are veterans Bryan Bagunas, Marck Jesus Espejo, and Josh Ybañez Lloyd Josafat. Though the Koreans are known for their offensive firepower, Alas Men will be putting more premium on how they play. “That will be our focus, our own games rather than our opponents,” added Dimaculangan. Meanwhile, four-peat seeking Iran starts its campaign against Kyrgyzstan at 1 p.m., while AVC Continental Cup champion Japan faces Uzbekistan in Pool A, beginning  7 p.m. at the Okazaki Chuo Sogo Park. China, which was also drawn with Alas and Korea in Pool D, collides with Chinese-Taipei at 7 p.m. TMT

The Philippines now has nine medals--two golds, all won by Carlos Yulo, two silvers, and five bronzes--in the 2026 Asian Games as of September 25.

MANILA, Philippines — Alex Eala seized the top seed and a first-round bye in the 20th Asian Games women's singles tennis at the Nagoya City Higashiyama Park Tennis Center in Japan. The Philippine Tennis Association (Philta) revealed the tournament draw in a Facebook post on Friday. Coming off a shock second-round exit at the WTA 500 Singapore Open, the Filipino tennis ace will face the winner between Thailand's Patcharin Cheapchandej and Pakistan's Mahin Aftab Qureshi who clash in the first round. World No. 18 Eala suffered a stunning 6-4, 5-7, 3-6 loss to No. 180 Tatiana Prozorova of Russia in the round of 16 on Thursday in Singapore, where she was the No. 3 seed with a first-round bye. Eala is determined to bounce back in the Asian Games, where she's the favorite to win the gold medal in the tournament running from September 27 to October 3. Back in the 2018 edition of the tournament, then 18-year-old Eala snared two bronze medals -- one in individual and another in mixed doubles. No. 2 seed Zhang Shuai of China also received a first-round bye in this year's 32-player Asiad field. Ranked No. 55 in the WTA, 37-year-old Zhang is poised to challenge 21-year-old Eala for the title. Eala already defeated Zhang in their lone encounter in the first round of the HSBC Championships last June, 6-3, 6-2. No. 3 seed Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan and No. 4 Wang Xiyu of China are the two other WTA players poised to challenge Eala for the Asiad gold. Putintseva is ranked No. 79 while Wang is No. 83. Meanwhile, another Filipino bet in Tenniele Madis will also compete in the women's singles play. Madis will face No. 7 seed Himeno Sakatsume of Japan in the first round. Eala and Madis will compete in the doubles division, too. Eala teams up with Shaira Hope Rivera as they face Lai Ching Laam and Kallista Liu of Hong Kong in the first round. Rivera will also see action in the mixed doubles with Francis Casey Alcantara as they battle Kasra Rahmani and Meshkatolzahra Safi of Iran in the first round. On the other hand, Madis joins forces with Stefi Marithe Aludo as they take on Anjali Kirana Junarto and Meydiana Laviola Reinnamah of Indonesia for their opener.

MANILA, Philippines — Filipino gymnast Carlos Yulo is set to receive a base of P4 million from the Philippine government after winning two gold medals at the 20th Asian Games in Japan. Yulo ruled the men's artistic gymnastics floor exercise on Thursday and the vault apparatus on Friday. Under Republic Act No. 10699 or the "National Athletes and Coaches Benefits and Incentives Act," individual gold medalists will receive P2 million for each gold won. Yulo may receive more than P4 million as Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) chairman Patrick Gregorio said prior to the Asiad that President Bongbong Marcos will double the amount of money Asian Games medalists will receive. The Philippine Olympic Committee may also add to that amount. Meanwhile, individual silver medalists will receive P1 million while bronze medalists will be given P400,000. For team events, the said law stated that "the national team with less than five members receive the same cash incentives for individual medal winners as herein provided, to be divided equally among the team members actually present during the competition," This applies to the Gilas Pilipinas 3x3 women's team and the Philippine women's kata team, who each had less than five members and won silver and bronze medals, respectively. Gilas' Kaycey Dela Rosa, Maria Pasilang, Kennan Ka, and Amyah Espanol will share the P1 million as silver medalists. On the other hand, the kata team of Emmanuelle Veguillas, Ysabielle Arrogante, and Rebecca Cyril Torres will share the P400,000 incentive as bronze medalists. The Philippine women's soft tennis team of Bien Zoleta, Princess Catinding, Christy Sanosa, Hilary Paas, and Shyryn Salazar will also share P400,000 as bronze medalists.

MANILA, Philippines — Filipino tennis ace Alex Eala was voted as the WTA Star of the Hard-Court Swing. The WTA released the poll results on Friday, showing Eala as the landslide winner with 78 percent of the votes. World No. 18 Eala, the Mubadala D.C. Open titlist, defeated US Open champion and world No. 1 Elena Rybakina as well as Canadian Open winner and world No. 9 Iga Swiatek in the poll. Rybakina took 16 percent of the votes while Swiatek claimed three percent. Eala thus went back-to-back after winning the Star of the Grass-Court Swing poll last July following her fourth-round appearance at Wimbledon.

PHILADELPHIA — LeBron James said his longstanding friendship with All-Star Tyrese Maxey and a desire to help Joel Embiid win his first NBA title played significant roles in his decision to sign a two-year, $8 million contract with the Philadelphia 76ers in July. The 41-year-old James revealed scant details about the free-agency process on his “Mind the Game” podcast with co-host Steve Nash that dropped Friday. James is scheduled to meet the press for the first time as a Sixer on Monday at the team's media day in Camden, New Jersey. Training camp opens next week. A four-time NBA champion, James wrote on social media when he signed with the Sixers that he felt he was “done” when his 23rd NBA season ended, his last with the Los Angeles Lakers. But after time away with family, and still feeling physically and mentally strong in offseason workouts, James decided he wanted to keep playing. James has won NBA championships with every team he's played for: the Lakers, Miami and Cleveland. “I think I'm more in love with the pursuit of how much more can I defy the odds," James said on the podcast. James said “Philly was not even a question” early in his decision making until the Sixers pulled the surprising deal with Boston for NBA Finals MVP and champion Jaylen Brown. James and Maxey share an agent and have been friends and workout partners since the Sixers guard broke into the league, a friendship that turned into a recruiting pitch for the NBA’s career scoring leader. “When I became a free agent and we decided to let the Lakers know that I wouldn’t be returning, he was one of the first people that was on my line, calling me,” James said of Maxey. James also was intrigued with trying to help the oft-injured Embiid win his first title. Embiid has won an NBA MVP, two scoring titles, and Olympic gold medal, but has yet to lead the Sixers out of the second round of the playoffs since Philadelphia selected him third overall in the 2014 draft. “He’s done everything in our league, and the only thing he has not done is win a championship. And I want to try to help him get that first one,” James said. "He has a city on his back. He’s been ‘The Process’ for 10 years, 12 years, however long he’s been there. But I think it’s time we even get you deeper into The Process. And I hope that I can be, kind of, that final little piece that can help him get over the hump.” The Sixers went 45-37 last season and were swept in the second round by the eventual NBA champion New York Knicks. James’ résumé is beyond compare in NBA history. He’s a 22-time All-Star, a 21-time All-NBA selection, a four-time Most Valuable Player, a four-time NBA Finals MVP, a three-time All-Star Game MVP, and was a member of the NBA’s 75th anniversary team. He’s also coming off a season where he averaged 20.9 points, 6.1 rebounds and 7.2 assists per game. For his career, he’s averaged 26.8 points, 7.5 rebounds and 7.4 assists in more than 1,600 games. James’ eight seasons with the Lakers were the longest continuous stretch with a single team of his NBA career, and he helped the franchise win its 17th championship in 2020. He even became the first father to play alongside his son in league history, teaming up with guard Bronny James for the past two seasons. James called it “humbling” to play for the Lakers and expressed disappointment he wasn't able to enjoy a championship parade because of the 2020 pandemic. James called Los Angeles home and said it would be for “the foreseeable future.” So why not return to the Lakers? Or reunite with the Heat or Cavaliers or stay in California and sign with the Golden State Warriors? James offered no real insight to any teams he may have talked to or how close he may have been with signing with another team. He said he wanted to bring the championship blueprint to Philadelphia and lead the Sixers to their first title since 1983. And he felt great during workouts in the summer, so why stop now? “If you still have an opportunity to do what you love, then why just say I'm done? What is the reason? Do you have a real reason?,” James asked.

De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde bounced back at the expense of still-winless Mapua University, 82-77, in the NCAA Season 102 men"s basketball tournament on Friday at the PhilSports Arena.

FAVORED to win the gold medal in the 2026 Asian Games, tennis ace Alexandra “Alex” Eala faces more pressure to deliver in Nagoya, Japan after her early exit in the Singapore Open. Eala, ranked 18th in the world, played a gruesome three-hour battle against world No. 180 Tatiana Prozorova in the round of 16 of the Singapore Open and lost, 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, on Thursday night. Eala fought hard in Singapore but was outplayed by Prozorova, who scored a victory against a top 40 player for the first time. With the early exit, Eala can now focus on her Asian Games campaign where she is the top seed. In Nagoya, Eala will go up against China’s Shuai Zhang (54th), Thailand’s Lanlana Tararudee (61st), China’s Xiyu Wang (82nd) and Mananchaya Sawangkaew (88th). “I think I have as big a chance [of winning the gold] as any other person on the draw,” the 21-year-old Eala said during the post-game press conference of the Singapore Open. Philippine Olympic Committee (POC) president Abraham Tolentino, meanwhile, made a bold statement that the nation could finish with eight gold medals in the Asian Games and included Eala on his list of gold medal finishers. “Yeah, I think once you compete and once you’re in the draw, you have a chance. So do my best of course, process the loss all on the sides on the board,” she added. Pressure, however, mounts as the 2026 Asian Games tennis tournament begins on Sept. 27 but Eala remains confident that she can deliver. “Like I said, I just need to analyze and reconvene with my team and you know, say, ‘Hey we need to work on A, B, and C.’ And so I’ll work on it, and I think that’s the beauty of sport, the beauty of tennis. It’s a constant ... I guess, evolution, always learning,” she said. Still, she said that she needs to brush off the setback in Singapore and focus on the next one. “You’re going to have days like this where you battle for three hours and it’s just doesn’t go your way, so I have to learn from it but also not try to make it bigger than it needs to be,” she added.

KAYLA Sanchez was so close to ending the 28-year medal drought of the Philippines in the swimming event at the Asian Games. The two-time Olympic medalist, however, missed the podium by a hairline in the 100-meter freestyle after clocking 53.65 seconds, just 0.18 second slower than bronze medalist Cheng Yukie of China, who clocked 53.17 seconds. In her favorite 50-meter freestyle event, she was 0.29 second short of a bronze medal finish after clocking in 24.75 seconds. China’s Yujie Cheng bagged the bronze at 24.46 seconds. Sanchez bared her emotions and expressed her disappointment for not taking home a medal. “I guess I’m disappointed that I wasn’t able to bring the Philippines a medal, and I’m really sorry that I wasn’t able to do that. But I think the greater lesson here is not to be afraid to try,” said Sanchez who won two Olympic medals in Tokyo while representing Canada. The last time the Philippines won a medal at the Asian Games was in 1988 when Raymond Papa captured two bronze medals in the 100-m and 200-m backstroke events. Despite the heartaches in Nagoya, Sanchez is determined to bounce back.  “Yes, I am not done [in the Asian Games]. And I am motivated to get better results, and get better, and get faster,” she said. “I love swimming. I love representing the Philippines, and I just want to do more,” she added. Since Sanchez changed her federation from Canada to the Philippines in 2023, she said that her time has improved. Sanchez was part of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics silver medal team in the 4x100-m freestyle relay, and the bronze medal team in the 4x100-m medley relay. The 25-year-old swimmer earned three gold medals and five silver medals in the 2025 Southeast Asian Games in Thailand. Sanchez understood that she was going against tough opponents in the Asian Games, and that motivated her to be better. “Train very hard. Work in silence and come here for the glory and compete like you never lost. And that’s still the mentality that I hold,” she said. “I have the greatest respect for my competitors. But at the same time, I want a medal for the Philippines.” Sanchez, however, posted two new national records in swimming with a time of  28.19 seconds in the 50-meter backstroke event, and 24.75 seconds in the 50-meter freestyle. “ I don’t know what’s going to happen in 5 years, but I know right now that I’m motivated to compete and give a medal for the Philippines in the next Asian Games,” she said.