One looks to repeat, while the other hopes to break the trend as Sichuan Yuanda Meile and Denso slug it out for the FIBA WBL Asia 2026 title tonight at the Sree Kanteerava Indoor Stadium in Bengaluru.
The champion clubs of China and Japan will be duking it out for gold for the second time in a row after Dongguan New Century and the Fujitsu Red Wave battled in the 2025 finale.
Dongguan went on to rule the tilt in front of their own people to keep the crown in the country, and the Pandas would surely want to do the same although their own attempt bears much more significance.
Because the defending WCBA queens are looking to bring home their second WBL Asia championship, having emerged as the inaugural winners of the premier women’s ball club competition in this continent in 2024.
Sichuan return to Final after blowout of Stars
Sichuan Yuanda Meile booked a return trip to the final following a 93-74 rout of Cheongju KB in the semi-finals.
The Pandas got off to a solid start but it wasn’t the fourth quarter where they’d pull away for good to leave their no-quit foes behind, giving themselves an opportunity to bring home their second title in this league.
It could be recalled that the WCBA powerhouse emerged as the inaugural champions of the premier women’s club competition in Asia by ruling the 2024 edition – held in the city of Chengdu – through a mighty 3-game sweep.
Now they have a chance to pull off another golden sweep, as they’re coming into the Big Dance unbeaten thus far, having swept all of their 2 games in Group A before crushing the hopes of their WKBL counterparts.
“We will try our best to get it,” simply said Coach Yang Yi.
Chennedy Carter led the way with 31 points, 23 of which she made in just the first half, alongside 5 rebounds and 5 assists plus 1 steal and 2 blocks.
Sara Blicavs registered a double-double of 21 points and 16 rebounds, as she and the WNBA veteran helped restore order during the final period when the opposition got to as close as 11 during the frame prior.
Gao Song made 22 points and 4 rebounds, with Jia Saqi adding 9 points – including a tough trey under duress to push their lead back to 80-59 with 7:54 left which wowed the Sree Kanteerava Indoor Stadium crowd.
“They gave us a lot of challenges offensively and defensively,” offered veteran forward Gao regarding their gritty Korean opponents. “But you know, through the effort of the whole team, we won the game.”
Na Yunjeong led Cheongju with 22 points, 8 of which she made in the fourth.
Song Yunha made 15 points and 8 rebounds. Heo Yeeun added 15 as well for the Stars, who can still salvage a podium finish when they take on Cathay Life in the third-place game.
Yabu strikes dagger as Denso scrape past Cathay Life to reach Final
Minami Yabu struck the dagger to help Denso repel a hard-fighting Cathay Life side, 86-78, to advance to the final.
The former Japan youth team stalwart finished with 10 points on a 3-of-4 clip from deep, none bigger than her last of the night for the 86-76 lead with 16.6 seconds left to douse cold water on the Tigers’ threat.
It was a shot so badly needed from the 22-year-old as their offense went stale down the stretch, allowing the opposition to cut an 18-point gap to just 83-76 with 41.2 seconds to spare after Hsu Yu-Lien got in rhythm.
But then, poise proved to be the biggest difference, with Yabu calmly swishing in the outside shot from the right wing that enabled all of Iris to heave a huge sigh of relief for overcoming a sloppy closeout to the bout.
With the escape, the W League champions have arranged a title showdown with Sichuan Yuanda Meile on Sunday, October 25, as teams from China and Japan will duke it out for the tiara for the second straight time.
The Pandas were the first to advance after beating Cheongju earlier, 93-74, with the troika of Chennedy Carter, Sara Blicavs, and veteran forward Gao Song combining for 75 points to headline the victory.
“Many things could’ve been better,” offered head coach Vladimir Vuksanovic after his charges needed to withstand a bad start and a tough endgame. “But it’s just our third game. I hope we have spent the bad day.”
“And I hope tomorrow is a new day and we could come with fresh minds and legs, start from zero, and compete in the Final,” he added.
Maki Takada top-scored for Denso with 20 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists. Haruna Kasagi supplied 15 points as the two led the attack that hiked the lead to 18 during the deciding chapter before the retaliation.
Sokhna Sulla made 9 points, highlighted by timely hits from midrange, while Mai Kawai chipped in 6 points and 11 of the team’s 30 assists.
“We’re here representing Japan so we’re relieved, we’re happy that we get to go to the Final and challenge for the league championship,” said Takada, who earned Player of the Game honors by match’s end.
Put to naught by the tough loss was the 30-point effort of Penina Davidson, which was easily her best game of the competition thus far. She went 13-of-15 from the floor and also tallied 5 rebounds and 3 assists.
Shelby Cheslek, on the other hand, was just an assist shy of a rare triple-double with 14 points, 14 rebounds, and 9 assists as the reinforcements carried much of the load offensively for the long-time WSBL powerhouse.
