NAKHON RATCHASIMA, Thailand – The Philippine national men’s 3x3 wheelchair team booked a spot in the semifinal after winning its first two games in the 13th Asean Para Games here at Hall 1 of Terminal 21 Korat on Monday, January 19, 2026.
Led by team captain Kenneth Tapia, Alfie Cabañog, Jannil Cañete, and Fel Lander Dawal, the Pilipinas Warriors started strong with a convincing 20-3 victory over Indonesia.
Tapia was the leading scorer with nine points in the win versus Indonesia.
Head coach Vernon Perea said the Filipinos’ landslide victory over the Indonesians set the tone for the rest of the campaign.
“In the first match, we had Alfie and Kenneth running the game very smoothly, so iniwan lang natin. We got the chance to finish it early, kasi we’re expecting a close match against Malaysia (In the first match, Alfie and Kenneth were running the game very smoothly, so we just let them handle it. We also had the chance to finish the match early because we were expecting a close game against Malaysia,” Perea said.
“Luckily, we came out as the winners.”
Cabañog scored seven points against the Malaysians en route to an 11-7 victory in the second game.
The Philippines is battling host Thailand at press time to determine the top seed of the competition.
Meanwhile, the women’s 3x3 wheelchair basketball squad is in a must-win situation after losing its first two games in the same venue.
Meanwhile, the Pilipinas Lady Warriors absorbed a 2-14 loss to the Thais and a 5-8 defeat to Laos.
National team coach Harry Solanoy said that with only three teams in the tournament, they need to step up their game if they want to make it to the finals.
“Ang kailangan, talunin namin ng by four points ang Laos kung matalo sila ng Thailand (We need to beat Laos by four points if they lose to Thailand),” Solanoy said, as the worst team in the tournament will not be given a bronze medal. PR