Strong Group-PH closes Jones Cup with win, finishes fifth

Strong Group-Pilipinas’ Boban Marjanovic during a game vs Jordan in the 2026 William Jones Cup. –SGA PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—Strong Group-Pilipinas salvaged fifth place in the 2026 William Jones Cup after beating Jordan, 96-91, in the classification game Friday night in Taiwan.

NBA veteran Boban Marjanovic spearheaded the charge for the Philippine-based team in their final game with 21 points, missing just four of his 13 shots from the field. He also had eight rebounds and three assists.

In the end, the  Strong Group-Pilipinas finished the tournament with six wins, including a 5-1 card for second place in the group phase.

Despite that record, the tournament’s new format denied the Philippines a semifinal spot as the host teams in both groups were given direct berths to the next phase.

Since losing their tournament opener at the hands of South Korea’s Wonju DB Promy, Strong Group-Pilipinas never dropped a game the rest of the way.

Coach Charles Tiu and company vented their ire on the semifinals-bound Chinese Taipei-Blue—which had a 1-5 record—with a 43-point beatdown, 117-74.

Tajuan Agee helped Marjanović in the classification game with 17 points, four rebounds and three steals, while Ian Miller and Matthew Wright added 15 points each for Strong Group-Pilipinas.

Hadi Alshami led Jordan with 21 points, while Abdullah Olajuwon, son of NBA legend Hakeem Olajuwon, had 18 points, three assists and a block. Saif Saleh added 12 in the loss.