Strong Group became the first Philippine-based team to repeat as champions in the William Jones Cup.
Strong Group-Philippines capped another dominant campaign in the William Jones Cup, cruising past the United Arab Emirates, 87–62, on Sunday to complete a perfect 8–0 sweep and successfully defend their crown at the Xinzhuang Gymnasium.
With the title already secured entering the final day, Strong Group refused to ease up, delivering a resounding win that punctuated a historic run.
The back-to-back titles marked the first time a Philippine team has pulled off consecutive championships in the 44-year history of the tournament.
“We are happy to win a championship again. We never take anything for granted,” said head coach Charles Tiu, who steered Strong Group to both of its Jones Cup victories.
This version of Strong Group became the eighth Philippine-based team to be Jones Cup champions, following in the footsteps of Northern Cement (1982), San Miguel (1985), the Centennial Team (1998), Gilas Pilipinas (2012), Mighty Sports (2016 and 2019), and their own 2024 squad.
The win on Sunday also stretched Strong Group’s unbeaten run in the Jones Cup to 16 games across the 2024 and 2025 editions.
This year’s victories came by an average of 19.38 points, including triumphs over Chinese-Taipei Blue, Japan Developmental, Qatar, NBL1 Rising Stars (Australia), Chinese-Taipei White, Malaysia, and Bahrain.
“It’s special, especially because I don’t know if we will be able to have this group again,” said Tiu.
“DJ [Fenner] and [Jason] Brickman are probably joining the [PBA} draft, Javi [Gomez de Liaño] and Rhenz [Abando] will probably have different teams already, and we don’t know where our other guys will be next year,” he added.
“But we had a great group of guys—guys committed to winning and sacrificing for the team. It’s rare to have this kind of chemistry and character guys on the team.”
While the future remains uncertain, Tiu hinted that Strong Group is looking to keep the momentum going by potentially organizing a top-tier invitational tournament back home.
“We haven’t figured out what's next, but me, Boss Frank, and Boss Jacob Lao are talking about potentially having an invitational in Manila,” Tiu shared.
“I’ve talked to some teams and they’re interested, so let’s see. But for now, we are just going to enjoy the moment here.”
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[Editor's note: This article was generated by a member of the One Sports Digital team using AI, and then checked by the staff to ensure accuracy.]