Philippine News

December 2 ------ GILAS Pilipinas completed a sweep of Guam, 95-71 in the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027 Asian Qualifiers at the Blue Eagle Gym in perhaps Japeth Aguilar's final international game. The Nationals went on a 17-3 run to start the game and led by as many as 27 points which proved enough to begin the qualifiers for the next World Cup in Qatar with a 2-0 win-loss record in Group A. Gilas gained a share of the lead with Australia, which the Philippines will face at

DOHA, Qatar, December 2 ------ The three-way F1 title fight will go down to the last race of the season after Max Verstappen took full advantage of a McLaren blunder to win the Qatar Grand Prix. The Red Bull driver made an immediate pit stop during an early safety car intervention, when McLaren duo Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris stayed out, and he capitalized by driving with cool precision to triumph in convincing style. His win lifted him into second place in the title race

LOS ANGELES, December 2 ------ The NBA champion Oklahoma City Thunder avenged their only defeat of the season using a fourth-quarter surge to beat the Portland Trail Blazers 123-115 and improve to 20-1. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 26 points to lead six Thunder players in double figures. With their 12th straight win Oklahoma City are off to the best start since the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors opened the season 21-0. Reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Gilgeous-Alexander's 9

December 2 ------ BLACKLIST International fell to Malaysia’s Alpha Gaming, 1-4, in the lower bracket semifinals, bowing out of the Honor of Kings International Championship 2025 at Ayala Malls Manila Bay. Even though Blacklist International’s KIC 2025 run ended in heartbreak, the team fought until the final moment and proved how far the Philippines has risen on the global Honor of Kings stage. Here’s a recap of Blacklist’s last two matches in KIC 2025. Blacklist International

December 1 ------ The Angels captured their fourth PVL championship by spoiling ZUS Coffee’s dream run, 21-25, 28-26, 25-23, 25-19, in the 2025 PVL Reinforced Conference crown at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. The Angels now stand alone as the most successful team in Reinforced Conference history with three titles spaced three years apart since 2019. The campaign also carved out a slate of Petro Gazz milestones led by its first two-title calendar year, Lindsey Vander Weide becom

December 1 ------ GILAS Pilipinas decided not to tinker with its lineup and will parade the same personnel against Guam when the two sides meet again today in the FIBA World Cup Asian qualifiers. In the wake of its 87-46 win over the same team in the first game of the opening window Friday at the University of Guam Calvo Field House, the national team opted to retain the 12-man roster for the 7:30 p.m. rematch at the Blue Eagle gym. Returning for Gilas are Chris Newsome, Scot

December 1 ------ The King Crunchers are champions at last, outlasting Japanese guest team Kindai University in a riveting 25-15, 25-21, 23-25, 23-25, 22-20 thriller to capture the 2025 Spikers’ Turf Invitational Conference crown at the Playtime Filoil Centre. Once on the brink of a reverse-sweep collapse, the Rebisco-backed team clawed its way through an extended fifth set, saving six championship points before a costly attack error from Misugi Haruka finally sealed the long

December 1 ------ Emmanuel “Jimuel” Pacquiao Jr. fought Brendan Lally to a majority draw in his professional debut at the Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula, California. After four rounds, the judges scored the lightweight bout 39-37 for Pacquiao, and 38-38 on the two remaining cards. Lally came out as the aggressor from the opening bell, pressing forward and letting his hands go as he searched for short shots in close quarters. Jimuel, on the other hand, was more economi

MANILA, November 30 ------ A Women's Tennis Association (WTA) tourney will officially be hosted in Manila next year. This, as Philippine Women's Open is officially added to the WTA calendar, setting the stage for Manila's first-ever WTA 125 tournament. It will take place from January 26-31, 2026, and will be held at hard courts with a 32-player singles draw and 16-team doubles. The total prize commitment is at $115,000. In an interview with a handful of reporters at the sidel

MANILA, Philippines, November 30 ------ Philippine cue artist Carlo Biado was formally inducted into the Billiard Congress of America (BCA) Hall of Fame in St. Augustine, Florida. Biado, who was fresh off an appearance at the International Open in the same city, received 91 percent of the votes in his second year of eligibility into the hall. His induction followed his win at the 2025 World Pool Championship back in August. During his speech, Biado said he was thankful to his

MANILA, Philippines, November 29 ------ The Abra Solid North Weavers overpowered the Pangasinan Heatwaves, 99-74 to clinch the North Division crown via a sweep in the 747 Live presents Manny Pacquiao MPBL 2025 Season at the Robert B. Estrella Memorial Gymnasium in Rosales, Pangasinan. Abra also prevailed in Game 1, 77-58, and Game 2, 66-59, both held in Bangued, Abra, and cut short the best-of-five series. The Weavers, drawing firepower from Top Gun Dave Ildefonso, Encho Serr

MANILA, Philippines, November 29 ------ Boxing and nine other events of the Thailand SEA Games originally scheduled for Songkhla have been moved to Bangkok due to massive flooding that hit the southern province. Local reports said that the conditions of the venue coupled with potential risk of disease outbreaks prompted the host country to move those disciplines, mostly combat sports, to the Thai capital for the Games set Dec. 9 to 20. The Nation, an English-language publicat

MANILA, Philippines, November 28 ------ It will be a clash of an up-and-coming crew and a seasoned squad in the PVL Reinforced Conference finals. The ZUS Coffee Thunderbelles and the Petro Gazz arranged a face-off for the Reinforced Conference crown after thwarting their semifinal foes at the Araneta Coliseum. ZUS pummeled the PLDT High Speed Hitters in three sets, 25-22, 28-26, 25-22, to secure its first-ever PVL finals ticket since joining the league in 2023. Anna Debeer

MANILA, Philippines, November 28 ------ The road to the 2027 FIBA World Cup – and long-term, the 2028 Olympics – starts in this Guam stop. This is foremost on the minds of Gilas Pilipinas as it takes on Guam today at the Calvo Field House in the Asian side of the World Cup Qualifiers. The 7 p.m. game (5 p.m. in Manila) touches off a two-way swing that brings the two protagonists to the Blue Eagle Gym, the Nationals’ new home venue, on Monday for the return leg. “Our No. 1 goa

November 28 ------ Reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander fought through illness to score 40 points and lead Oklahoma City to a 10th consecutive victory while Detroit's win streak was snapped at 13 games. Gilgeous-Alexander, questionable with illness until game time, added six rebounds, six assists and three steals as the defending champion Thunder became the fifth team in league history to start a season 18-1 or better by outlasting Minnesota 113-105. "We'

MANILA, November 28 ------ Isabella Bandoja scored a consolation goal as the Philippine women's national futsal team bowed out of the FIFA Futsal Women's World Cup with a 1-5 loss to powerhouse Argentina. In front of over 2,800 fans at the PhilSports Arena, the Filipina5 regained their bearings after a shaky first half and put up a gutsy effort in their final 20 minutes in the competition. Bandoja found the back of the net after the 27th minute, giving the home fans something

November 27 ------ Luka Doncic scored 24 of his 43 points in the first quarter and finished with 13 assists and 9 rebounds as the host Los Angeles Lakers notched a 135-118 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers to clinch West Group B of the NBA Cup. Austin Reaves scored 18 of his 31 points in the fourth quarter and collected 9 rebounds for the Lakers, who won their fifth consecutive game. LeBron James added 25 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists, and Rui Hachimura had 13 points.

MANILA, November 27 ------ Host Philippines battles Group A leader Argentina Thursday night, raring to deliver a strong performance in its last appearance at the inaugural FIFA Futsal Women’s World Cup at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig. Though already out of contention for the quarterfinals after opening losses to Poland (0-6) and Morocco (2-3), the gritty Filipina5 vow to go all out in the 8:30 p.m. duel with the unbeaten La Albiceleste as a treat for loyal supporters. “It’s

November 27 ------ THE Kansas City Chiefs overcame both a double-digit fourth-quarter deficit and a botched face mask call to salvage their season in Week 12. Referee Alex Moore’s crew got it wrong when Jawaan Taylor was whistled for a face mask penalty that erased a tying touchdown by Travis Kelce in Kansas City’s 23-20 win over the Indianapolis Colts. CBS analyst Tony Romo got it wrong, too, when he suggested Chiefs coach Andy Reid could have challenged the dubious call. Th

MANILA, Philippines, November 27 ------ The Final Four cast in the UAAP Season 88 men’s basketball tournament is now complete. The La Salle Green Archers clinched the fourth and last semifinal spot after overcoming rival Ateneo Blue Eagles in the final game of the elimination round, 78-72, at the Araneta Coliseum. With the victory, the Green Archers set up a Final Four clash with the top-seeded NU Bulldogs and avoided a three-way tie, as well as a stepladder for the No. 4 se