Cariño shines as Gilas Boys stay unbeaten

Gilas Pilipinas Boys cruised into the semifinals of the 2026 FIBA Under-18 Asia Cup SEABA Qualifiers with a dominant 98–63 victory over host Thailand on Friday at the Chan Ka Pho Gymnasium in Krabi.

The Philippines, which opened the tournament with a 121–28 rout of Vietnam and followed it up with a 110–50 thrashing of Singapore, remained perfect in pool play. They will face Malaysia (1–1 in Pool B) in the knockout semifinals on Saturday afternoon.

FEU Diliman’s Prince Cariño once again led the way for Gilas, finishing with 18 points on efficient 8-of-9 shooting. The 6-foot-8 big man from Imus, Cavite, is coming off a 21-point performance against Singapore.

After taking a slim 21–15 lead after the first quarter, Gilas exploded in the second period. Bruce Tubongbanua, Cariño, Andrew Chio, Ethan Aguas, Hans Patagoc, and Pat Pasino combined for a 26-point surge that gave the Filipinos a commanding 14-point halftime advantage.

Cariño then took over early in the third quarter, scoring nine straight points to blow the game open.

Four other Gilas players reached double figures: Hans Patagoc with 14 points, Joaquin Tovera with 13 points and seven assists, Ethan Aguas with 12 points and six rebounds, and Bruce Tubongbanua with 11 points.

Phurich Benjaariyakul led Thailand with 15 points in the loss. The Thais will now face Indonesia in the other semifinal classification match.