Serbia banked on Nikola Jokic in overtime to eliminate Australia 95-90 and book a ticket to the Olympics men’s basketball tournament semifinals held at the Bercy Arena in Paris on Tuesday, August 6 (Manila Time).In the first half of play, the Serbians trailed by as much as 24 points but surged back in the second half to have a toe-to-toe game against Australia.Serbia almost took the game in regulation but Patty Mills, with two seconds left in the game clock made his fade-away jumper to tie the game at 82 and forced the game into overtime.Jokic hit the go-ahead basket with a minute and seven seconds remaining in overtime before hitting his signature fadeaway shot over the outstretched arm of Duop Reath with 25 seconds left in the extension.The Boomers had a chance to equalize or just trim the lead to one but Josh Giddey made an inbound error that led to two free throws for Bogdan Bogdanovic that eventually sealed the game.Nikola Jokic led the way for Serbia with his almost triple-double performance tallying 21 points, grabbing 14 rebounds, dishing off nine assists and having four steals while Patty Mills led the Boomers with 26 points.Serbia is now waiting for the winner of the USA-Brazil match-up for their semi-finals battle.

When pain struck in the midst of his Olympic debut, weightlifter John Ceniza was not able to continue his fight for the country because of a shoulder injury that took control over him. With this, Ceniza failed to make a lift in the snatch portion during Wednesday’s competition at the South Paris Arena. The 26 year-old  broke into tears because he failed thrice to lift 125 kg. in the men's 61 kg division and was officially marked a DNF (Did not Finish) in the event. Ceniza was the first to bow out in the 12 man competition.  According to Ceniza, it's hard on his part to compete when you haven't recovered yet. “Mahirap. Sa injury ko eh. Tatak kasi sa utak na may injury ka. Mahirap i-compete na 'di ka pa nakarecover, (It’s hard. With my injury. It goes to my mind that I have an injury. It’s hard to compete when you are not yet fully recovered),” Ceniza said.Still, the 26 year old weightlifter fought for the Philippine flag. “Pero nag-compete ako dahil sa Pilipinas. Lumalaban pa rin ako kahit may injury ako. Lumalaban pa rin ako para sa Pilipinas (But I still compete because it’s for the Philippines. I still compete even though I have an injury. I am fighting for the Philippines),” Ceniza added.Even though his mind wanted him to lift and attain the winning moment but Ceniza’s body betrayed him. Despite the loss in his Olympic debut this year, he vows to redeem himself in the L.A Olympic Games in 2028. Ceniza did not forget to give  thanks and made an apology to all the Filipinos who supported him despite his failure in the Olympics.

The host country France is heading back to the Olympics men’s basketball gold medal game after narrowly defeating Germany in their semi-final battle, 73-69.Germany started out strong to take a 10-point lead in the first canto of play but France tied the game heading to halftime. Les Bleus built a 13-point lead of its own with less than seven minutes in the fourth and final period. Germany cut the deficit into two in the final minute but France held on to the lead until the final buzzer.Guerschon Yabusele led France with 17 points. Victor Wembanyama had 11 points on 4-for-17 shooting, while Rudy Gobert went scoreless in just five minutes of action.Dennis Schröder scored a game-high 18 points for Germany and Franz Wagner chipped in with 10.France now awaits the winner of the USA-Serbia match-up to know whom they will face in the finals of the tournament.In France men’s basketball Olympic history, they have three silver medals in their bags - all three coming at the hands of Team USA and the latest was in 2020 Tokyo Olympics. This is the French’s 4th gold medal match appearance in Olympic basketball.This year's gold medal game will be held at 3:30 a.m on August 11, Sunday (PH time).Meanwhile, Germany will be battling for their first Olympic men’s basketball medal against the loser of the USA-Serbia match-up for the bronze medal at 5:00 p.m on August 10, Saturday (PH time).

Stephen Curry waxed hot in the Olympics men’s basketball tournament finals tallying 24 points on 8-of-10 shooting from behind the arc to lead Team USA in capturing the gold medal.The Americans became the Olympic champions for the fifth consecutive time after weathering the 26-point effort of France’s 20-year-old phenom Victor Wembanyama to grind out a 98-87 over the host team on Sunday early morning (PH time) at the Bercy Arena in Paris.Curry’s 24-point explosion included the four 3-pointers he made in the final 2:43 of play with one sealing the game with 1:19 remaining. It put the Americans up by 93-84. He also put the final nail in the coffin by draining one more with 30 seconds left - with his signature “night night” move where he puts his hands on the side of his face.

Alas Pilipinas secured another bronze medal after prevailing over Indonesia in the second leg of the 2024 Southeast Asian (SEA) V.League on Sunday, August 11, at the Korat Chatchai Hall in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand.Alyssa Solomon, Sisi Rondina, and Jema Galanza formed a potent combo to breeze the Philippines past Indonesia in five grueling sets, 20-25, 25-20, 16-25, 25-20, 15-10, for another podium finish in conclusion of the regional meet.Solomon and Rondina proved to be a lethal one-two punch on offense with 25 and 18 points, respectively, helping the Philippines battle back after trailing twice in the match.Alas newcomer Galanza saved the national’s fading medal hopes from 1-2 down with eight of her 14 markers in the fourth set as the Filipinas reached the podium for the second straight leg.Indonesia, which was the Philippines’ tormentor in the past three SEA Games, went winless in six games in two V.League legs despite the efforts of Megawati Pertiwi, who fired 31 attacks, three blocks, and two aces.It will be the turn of the Alas men’s team to play in the V.League starting on Friday, August 16, in the first leg held at Ninoy Aquino Stadium. The second leg is set in Indonesia starting on August 23.

Italian Angiolino Frigoni will be debuting as Alas Pilipinas men’s head coach in the first leg of Southeast Asian Volleyball League (SEA V.League) slated for August 16 to 18 at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.The 70-year-old mentor is a two-time Olympian head tactician for the Italian women's team in the 1992 Barcelona and 2000 Sydney games. He was formally named by the PNVF last June after being recommended by the Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB) last year.The Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF), headed by President Ramon Tats Suzara expects Alas Pilipinas men's team to showcase quality competitions among fellow Southeast Asian nations in the single round robin three-day tournament.

Choco Mucho kept its Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Reinforced Conference playoff bid alive after escaping Chery Tiggo on Tuesday, August 13, at PhilSports Arena.After coming from back-to-back losses to Petro Gazz and Capital1, the Flying Titans stayed in contention for the quarterfinals after overcoming the Crossovers in five sets, 25-16, 25-11, 23-25, 19-25, 15-12.

Filipina tennis ace Alex Eala to forge ahead to the quarterfinal round of the International Tennis Federation (ITF) W100 Cary Tennis Classic in North Carolina after outplaying Oksana Selekmeteva of Russia on Thursday, August 15 (Philippine time).The 19-year-old pulled off a 7-6(5), 7-6(4) triumph over her former doubles partner Oksana Selekhmeteva of Russia. The world No. 147 Eala seemed on her way to a straight-set victory in the Round of 16 when she eked a 4-1 lead in the second set against Selekhmeteva, who partnered with the Filipina during their girls doubles title romp in the 2021 French Open.Selekhmeteva previously held a 3-0 advantage over Eala in their singles head-to-head matchups. The Filipina will attempt to secure a semifinal berth when she faces the winner of the match between second seed Renata Zarazua of Mexico and Sijia Wei of China.

Filipina tennis player Alex Eala missed out on a semifinals berth of the W100 Cary tournament in North Carolina after failing to outplay second seed Renata Zarazua of Mexico early Friday morning (Philippine time).After taking the first set with ease, 6-3, Eala had a strong start in the second set, going up 4-2. However, Zarazua stormed back and won the next four games to take the match into a third set.Despite inching closer, pulling at 3-4, the 26-year-old Mexican bet kept her composure and won to punch a ticket to the semifinals.This is the second straight quarterfinal exit for the 19-year-old Asian Games bronze medalist after falling in the final eight of the W100 Landisville a few days ago. 

The Philippine Basketball Association 49th season opened the ceremony by acknowledging athletes and giving entertainment.When the curtains were raised at 5pm on Sunday, August 18 at the Araneta Coliseum.TV5 sports news anchor Tito Mikee Reyes and radio-TV host Ana Ramsey set the mood for the PBA’s opening night as they hosted the event.Then, the team muses together with the PBA board of governors came up on stage followed by the introduction of the team roster with their imports.Team muses were composed of different personalities from sports including Olympinas, beauty queens and celebrities.Singer-actress Julie Ann San Jose (who’s Magnolia muse last year) was the muse for the crowd-favorite Barangay Ginebra, Olympian gymnast Aleah Finnegan for Meralco, volleyball star Jema Galanza for Phoenix, figure skater Charmaine Syke Chua for NorthPort, SEA games medalist in karate Jamie Lim for San Miguel (Jamie’s father Samboy was one of the SMB’s icon in the 90’s), Miss World Philippines 2024 Krishnah Gravidez for Blackwater, streamer-host-model Myrtle Sarrosa for Converge, actress and model Rere Madrid for Magnolia, host-beauty queen Inday Fatima for NLEX, beauty queen Sophia Bianca Santos for Rain or Shine, pageant icon Annabelle Mcdonnel, and Eat Bulaga host Atasha Mulach for TNT.Olympic bronze medalists boxers Nesthy Petecio and Aira Villegas also joined them on stage.

Following the success of the recently concluded 2024 Paris Olympic Games, Philippine Sports Commission (PSC) Chairman Richard Bachmann expressed the agency’s aspiration to further nurture athletes that could bring glory to the country. Bachmann laid out plans to intensify grassroots and to initiate programs in order to bring consciousness to sports that are not usually patronized by youngsters and the general public.

The Creamline Cool Smashers clipped Petro Gazz Angels’ wings in the knockout quarterfinals of the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Reinforced Conference with a decisive victory. Despite being undermanned, Creamline secured the final spot in the semifinals after toppling the two-time Reinforced Conference defending champion Petro Gazz in straight-set wins, 25-23, 25-19, 25-18, at the FilOil EcoOil Centre on Tuesday, August 27. The Cool Smashers dominated what was expected to be a close contest, thanks to strong performances from Erica Staunton and Bernadeth Pons.

Hopson knocked down the 4-pointer with 4.8 seconds remaining in the game to lift Converge FiberXers to a 96-95 squeaker against TNT Tropang Giga after trailing as much as 16 points in the game.The Converge import completed his heroics in the defensive end as he blocked the driving Rondae Hollis-Jefferson just before the final buzzer went off.Converge improved to 2-1 as they dealt TNT their first loss of the conference after three matches.The FiberXers were still down by three, 95-92, after Hollis-Jefferson knocked down the game’s last four free throws, including a pair with only 9.6 seconds left in the contest.Converge interim head coach Franco Atienza said that they intended to take the four-point shot in their final possession as they have someone who can shoot from that distance.True enough, Hopson made the historic game-winning shot after he got enough space to launch a shot off the screen given by Bryan Santos against Glenn Khobuntin.

Billiards legend and "The Magician" Efren "Bata" Reyes celebrated his 70th birthday last  Monday. The Filipino athletes who attended his birthday paid tribute to Reyes and gave congratulatory and inspirational messages. Among those who gave messages and congratulations was two-time WPA Women's World 10-Ball Championship queen (2009 & 2013) Rubilen Amit.Amit is one of the closest athletes to Reyes and he inspired Reyes in the world  of billiards. Reyes has won more than 100 international titles and is the first billiards player in the world to win two WPA World Championships in different pool disciplines.Reyes also became a Champion in the WPA World 9-Ball Championship in 1999 in Cardiff, Wales and became a world champion again when he won the WPA World 8-Ball Championship in 2004 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).Reyes also won big in the U.S Open 9-Ball Championship, four-time All Japan Championship winner, seven-time WPA Asian 9-Ball Tour champion and carved a record as a 14-time Derby City Classic ruler.Reyes also won six gold medals in the Southeast Asian Games (SEAG) in 1987, 1991, and 1999 respectively.

Para swimmer Ernie Gawilan posted his third-fastest time in the heats to advance in the final of the men’s 400-meter freestyle S7 in the 17th Paralympic Games.Gawilan registered a time of 5:00.13 minutes and wound up third overall at the Paris La Defense Arena. A redemption performance two days after he failed to qualify for the medal race of the men’s 200-meter individual medley SM7.

Filipina para swimmer Angel Mae Otom displayed an exceptional performance in her debut stint at the 2024 Paralympic Games after finishing 6th overall in the women’s 50-meter backstroke S5 final at the Paris La Defense Arena Wednesday midnight, September 4 (Philippine time).Otom registered a time of 44 seconds, 0.3 faster than her qualifying time in the heats, to place sixth among eight finalists as China swept the podium places.

The Philippines launched its campaign in the 2024 Baseball Federation of Asia or BFA XIII Under-18 Asian Baseball Championship with back-to-back wins at the Taoyuan International Baseball Stadium in Chinese Taipei on Tuesday, September 3.The U18 men’s baseball squad got off to a strong start with a 10-0 record win over Sri Lanka on Monday, September 2, then followed it up with a 4-2 victory over Hong Kong to stay unscathed so far in Group B. Laurence Valeros banked on his winning pitch to frustrate Sri Lanka as he struck out seven batters and yielded two hits in three and one-third innings. Meanwhile, Rinaldo Kyle and Brandom Sanchez notched the necessary runs to take charge and break the 2-2 score in the sixth inning against Hong Kong. Aron Jesse Manguiat then pounded out four in a five-inning, effectively giving the game to the Philippines.The Filipino batters will battle Japan in its remaining group assignment on Wednesday, September 4, with identical 2-0 win-loss records.The outcome of the match will decide the Philippines’ opponent in the Super Round slated September 6 and 7 with the medal matches set September 8.

Reigning UAAP MVP Kevin Quimbao leads the De La Salle Green Archers to defeat the National University Bulldogs in their toe-to-toe battle, 78-75 in the opening game of the UAAP Season 87 at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.The Green Archers superstar scored nine of his 22 points in the clutch including the winning triple with 9.8 seconds left that basically ended the game.

Creamline Cool Smashers and Cignal HD Spikers are set to lock horns for the grand slam at the 2024 season of the Premier Volleyball League (PVL) Invitational Conference at the Smart Araneta Coliseum on Thursday, September 12.The finals-bound Cool Smashers decisively crushed Farm Fresh Foxies’ podium hopes with a straight-set victory, 25-15, 25-13, 25-19, in the final Invitational Conference preliminary game.Creamline secured the finals berth with Jema Galanza’s triumphant return to the lineup after her duties with Alas Pilipinas. Galanza posted a game-high 13 points anchored on 11 attacks and two blocks, booting out Farm Fresh for a podium finish.