Bangkok: Gilas Pilipinas advanced to the gold-medal match of the 33rd Southeast Asian Games women's basketball after defeating Indonesia, 66-55, in Thursday's semifinals at the Nimibutr Stadium here. Kacey dela Rosa had another huge game with 21 points, 11 rebounds, four steals and four blocks, while Afril Bernardino and Janine Pontejos also came through as Gilas leaned on a strong first half and never looked back.

According to Philippines News Agency, at one point, Gilas led in the second quarter, 37-18, before managing to keep Indonesia at bay the rest of the way. Coach Patrick Aquino expressed his satisfaction with the performance, stating, 'I know this was going to be a tough game and they're the defending champion and we're just happy that we won this game.'

The team showed resilience in maintaining their lead despite Indonesia's attempts to recover the deficit. 'That first quarter was big because we would always start slowly. But then again, they were coming back and we're getting physical already. So we tried to not be just physical, but 'yung maging handa sa kung ano man gagawin nila (ready for whatever they would do),' Aquino added.

Gilas will try to reclaim the gold it lost two years ago in Cambodia against either host Thailand or Malaysia on Friday at the same venue. Thailand and Malaysia were playing the other semifinal match at press time. Team Philippines is going for a third gold in the last four editions, also winning in 2019 and 2021.

Bernardino contributed significantly with 14 points, five rebounds, two assists, two steals, and two blocks, while Pontejos added 10 points for the Philippines.