Mighty Sports (sometimes referred to as Mighty Sports - Go For Gold for sponsorship reasons) is a

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

team based in the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

playing in various domestic tournaments. The team won four championships in the Republica Cup in 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2018. The team represented the

when they participated in the 2016 William Jones Cup in

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

, their first international tournament which they won with a sweep bearing a record of 8–0. They have competed in the Dubai International Basketball Championship participating in the 2017, 2019, 2020 editions. They became the first team based outside the Middle East to win the Dubai tournament in the 2020 edition. The squad was also the Philippine representative in the

2019 William Jones Cup The 2019 William Jones Cup is the 41st staging of William Jones Cup, an international basketball tournament held in Changhua, and New Taipei City, Taiwan. The men's tournament was held from 12 to 21 July 2019 while the women's tournament will be c ...

. Mighty Sports is the athletic arm of sportswear manufacturing company Mighty Sports Apparel and Accessories, Inc.

Competitive record

Republica Cup

Mighty Sports became first known to basketball fans in minor basketball leagues such as the Republica Cup (an invitational basketball tournament held in

Malolos Malolos , officially the City of Malolos (), is a component city and capital of the province of Bulacan, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 261,189 people. It is the capital city of the province of Bulacan as the ...

Bulacan Bulacan, officially the Province of Bulacan (; ; ; ), is a Provinces of the Philippines, province in the Philippines located in the Central Luzon Regions of the Philippines, region. Its capital is the city of Malolos. Bulacan was established on ...

as part of the commemoration of the

First Philippine Republic The Philippine Republic (), now officially remembered as the First Philippine Republic and also referred to by historians as the Malolos Republic, was a state established in Malolos, Bulacan, during the Philippine Revolution against the Spanish ...

, known as the Malolos Convention). It also sponsored the

Adamson Falcons The Adamson Soaring Falcons, Lady Falcons, Baby Falcons and Lady Baby Falcons are the collegiate men's and women's, and high school men's and women's, respectively, varsity teams of Adamson University that play in the University Athletic Assoc ...

men's basketball team and the

Bulacan State University Bulacan State University (BulSU or BSU; ) is a public university in Bulacan province, Philippines. Its main campus is in Malolos. BulSU or BSU originated as a secondary school in 1904 ran by the Americans, and has now progressed into one of the ...

Golden Gears men's basketball team in the

Filsports Basketball Association Filsports Basketball Association (FBA) was a regional grassroots amateur basketball league based in the Philippines, aiming to discover young and talented basketball players from the provinces and regions. Formed in January 2015, by a group of b ...

, and the Philippine Dragon Boat Team. In 2014, the team, led by former PBA player

Kenneth Duremdes Kenneth Celera Duremdes (born January 31, 1974) is a Filipino retired professional basketball player who currently serves as the commissioner of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL). Nicknamed as "Captain Marbel", Duremdes played i ...

and Kris Rosales, bagged the second Republica Cup title, after winning the finals game against Malolos Republica, 86–84. One year later, the team did not make it to the finals after losing the semifinals match against AMA University. On February 4, 2016, Mighty Sports, now-led by former UAAP MVP

Kiefer Ravena Kiefer Isaac Crisologo Ravena (; born October 27, 1993) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the Yokohama B-Corsairs of the B.League. Ravena played for the Ateneo Blue Eagles of the UAAP The University Athletic Association o ...

, successfully reclaimed the Republica Cup championship, beating Hobe Mackway Travel in the finals game, 85–82. In addition, Bright Akhuetie was named as the Tournament MVP.

Pilipinas Commercial Basketball League

In March 2016, the team joined the

Pilipinas Commercial Basketball League Pilipinas Commercial Basketball League (also known as PCBL) was a commercial amateur basketball tournament based in the Philippines that catered to the development and grassroots program for future Filipino basketball players, inspired from the ...

. Historically, this is the first entry into a major basketball league. Ravena, a

2016 PBA draft The 2016 Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) rookie draft was an event which allows teams to draft players from the amateur ranks. The league determined the drafting order based on the performance of the member teams for the 2015–16 seaso ...

prospect, together with

Ty Tang Tyrone Conrad Uy "TY" Tang (born September 25, 1984) is a Filipino former professional basketball player and a current head coach. He last played for Mighty Sports of the Pilipinas Commercial Basketball League (PCBL). Tang played for the Rain ...

, who came out of retirement in the

Philippine Basketball Association The Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) is a men's professional basketball league in the Philippines, composed of twelve company-branded Franchising, franchise teams. Founded in 1975, it is the first professional basketball league in Asia ...

, and import Bright Akhuetie are some of the players who retained in the team's line-up for the Champion's Cup. Mighty Sports also appointed

Bo Perasol Dolreich "Bo" Perasol (born November 30, 1971) is a Filipino people, Filipino basketball coach. He coaches in both collegiate and professional leagues. He is the former head coach of the Ateneo Blue Eagles and the UP Fighting Maroons, and is the c ...

as team consultant, Mike Fermin as head coach and

Charles Tiu Charles Alandy-Dy Tiu (born January 11, 1989) is a TV presenter and basketball coach who currently serves as head coach of Benilde Blazers and Strong Group Athletics. He is the brother of Chris Tiu. Coaching career His basketball career ...

as assistant coach of the team, which is one of the two new teams that competed in the 2016 PCBL Chairman's Cup, alongside SCTEX Road Warriors. On its first game, Mighty Sports completes an upset victory against Founder's Cup champion

Jumbo Plastic Linoleum Giants Jumbo Plastic Linoleum Giants is a basketball team currently playing in the Pilipinas Commercial Basketball League (PCBL). The team debuted during the 2013 Foundation Cup of the PBA D-League. 2013–2015 PBA D-League The PBA D-League, or PB ...

, 79–70 in the opening day of Champion's Cup on March 6, 2016. Ravena led the team's campaign with 16 points.

William Jones Cup

2016

The team represented the

in the 2016 William Jones Cup, with 7 foreign reinforcements leading the team, in lieu of the Gilas Cadets who were not available for playing. They beat team A of host nation

, who were fielding a second team, on their opening match. They then beat the

South Korea national team South is one of the cardinal directions or compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both west and east. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Proto-Germanic ''*sunþaz' ...

on their second match. They won their third match against the US team

Sacramento State Hornets The Sacramento State Hornets (also Sac State Hornets) is the team that represents California State University, Sacramento in intercollegiate athletics. The school fields 21 teams including men and women's basketball, cross country, golf, rowing, ...

. They beat

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

on their fourth by a blowout of 21 points. They faced the India national team on their fifth match and won by a 20 points margin to remain the only unbeaten team as of the 6th day of the tournament. They cemented the tournament's title by beating

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

on their 6th match. Mighty Sports continued their winning streak by beating

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

in their seventh match and swept the entire competition beating Taiwanese Team B.

2019

Mighty Sports once again represented the Philippines in the

from July 12 to 21 in Chinese-Taipei. Charles Tiu returned to lead the coaching staff and his mentor, former Gilas Pilipinas head coach,

Rajko Toroman Rajko Toroman ( sr-Cyrl, Рајко Тороман; born February 10, 1955) is a Serbian professional basketball coach. Coaching career Before 2016, he served as a team consultant for the Barako Bull Energy Cola and the Petron Blaze Boosters ...

was the lead assistant. It was also announced that Jeremiah Gray,

Roosevelt Adams Roosevelt Terrence Ocampo Adams (born May 22, 1994) is a Filipino-American professional basketball player for Yamagata Wyverns of the B.League, B2 League. Adams was selected 1st overall by the Columbian Dyip in the regular draft of the 2019 PBA ...

, Aaron Black, 2019 MPBL Datu Cup MVP

Gab Banal Gabriel Banal (born September 9, 1990) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the Quezon Huskers of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL). He was drafted 22nd overall pick in the 2nd round of the 2014 PBA Draft. After spend ...

, Jason Brickman and

Joseph Yeo Joseph Henry Lim Yeo (born September 7, 1983) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the Manila Stars of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL). He was drafted third overall by the Coca-Cola Tigers in 2006. Amateur career ...

would suit up for the team. Mighty Sports captured their second Jones Cup title after defeating Taiwan-A, 83-76 for a 7–0 record. They then swept the competition after with an 8–0 record.

Merlion Cup

Singapore's Merlion Cup Tournament was revived in

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

and the Mighty Sports were invited as the Philippines' representative. They beat the

Seoul Samsung Thunders Seoul Samsung Thunders () is a professional basketball team, competing in the Korean Basketball League. Ever since the club was founded in 1978, they have been associated with Samsung Electronics. Initially based in Suwon, they relocated to Seoul ...

on their opening match. They advanced into the semifinals round after beating

Westports Malaysia Dragons The Kuala Lumpur Dragons are a professional basketball team based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia that last played in the ASEAN Basketball League. They also played as the Blustar Detergent Dragons in the Philippines' PBA Developmental League in 2016. ...

, and eventually won against

Singapore Slingers The Singapore Slingers are a Singaporean professional basketball team that last competed in the ASEAN Basketball League. The Slingers were known as the JobStreet.com Singapore Slingers between 2009 and 2014, due to sponsorship ties with JobSt ...

. They advanced in the finals and faced

Shanghai Sharks The Shanghai Sharks ( zh, s=上海久事大鲨鱼, t=上海久事大鯊魚, p=Shànghǎi Jǐushì Dàshāyú) are a Chinese Basketball Association team based in Shanghai. The Sharks, who share their colors with the New York Knicks, are best know ...

in which they suffered a defeat, placing them in second after

Jimmer Fredette James Taft "Jimmer" Fredette (born February 25, 1989) is an American former professional basketball player who serves as the managing director of the USA Basketball 3x3 Men’s National Team. Fredette was the 2011 National Player of the Year i ...

scored three freethrows with no time left on the clock.

Dubai International Basketball Tournament

2017

Mighty Sports joined the 2017 Dubai International Basketball Championship with only a couple of weeks to prepare. The tournament took place from February 18 to 25, 2017. Mighty Sports was led by NBA veterans

Hasheem Thabeet Hasheem Thabeet (born Hashim Thabit Manka; 16 February 1987) is a Tanzanian professional basketball player who currently plays for Dar City. He played college basketball for the UConn Huskies before being drafted second overall in the 2009 NBA ...

Dominic McGuire Dominic Rashad McGuire (born October 20, 1985) is an American professional basketball player for Real Estelí Baloncesto. High school career McGuire played high school prep basketball at Lincoln High School in San Diego. College career After ...

Justin Brownlee Justin Donta Brownlee (born April 23, 1988) is an American naturalized Filipino professional basketball player who last played for the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). He played college basketball for ...

and naturalized player

Marcus Douthit Marcus Eugene Douthit (born April 15, 1980) is a Filipino-American former basketball player. He graduated from Providence College. After his stint with the Providence Friars, he was selected by the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball As ...

Chris Tiu Christopher John Alandy-Dy Tiu (born July 15, 1985) is a Filipino former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the Ateneo Blue Eagles with whom he won the UAAP title in 2008. He went on to play his entire professional ...

and center Beau Belga bannered the local cast along with other PBA veterans JC Intal,

Gary David Gary Ocampo David (born July 13, 1978) is a Filipino professional basketball player who last played for the Pampanga Giant Lanterns of the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL). He is a five-time All-Star and co-holds the longest stre ...

, Ryan Araña and two-time PBA MVP

Willie Miller William Ferguson Miller MBE (born 2 May 1955) is a Scottish former professional football player and manager, who made a club record 560 league appearances for Aberdeen. Sir Alex Ferguson described Miller as "the best penalty box defender in th ...

who were added in the team's lineup. Amateur standouts

Jeron Teng Jeron Alvin Uy Teng (born March 21, 1994) is a Filipino professional basketball player for the San Miguel Beermen of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA). As a PBA player, he usually starts at the swingman position but occasionally play ...

and Jett Manuel were also added in the team's roster. Due to the lack of cohesion and team chemistry, they lost to host team Al Ahli, 83-75 in the opening day. In their second game, they lost to the

Egypt national basketball team The Egypt national basketball team represents Egypt in international basketball competitions. The team is directed by the Egyptian Basketball Federation. Winning the title of the EuroBasket 1949 has been the team's most celebrated achievemen ...

, 84–82, after Ravena's three point attempt, in the last 6 seconds of the game, failed. The day after, they also lost in a close game to Lebanese powerhouse

Sagesse ''Sagesse'' () is a volume of French poetry by Paul Verlaine. First published in 1881 (see 1880), it was important in the symbolist and modernist Modernism was an early 20th-century movement in literature, visual arts, and music that emph ...

95–92. The team managed to beat Ball Above All with a score of 94–80 to end their stint in the tournament with a single win.

2019

Mighty Sports participated in the Dubai tournament in February 2019 with SMDC, Oriental Group, Healthcube and Go for Gold as the team's main sponsors. For their 2019 Dubai stint, the team hired the services of former NBA two-time champion

Lamar Odom Lamar Joseph Odom (born November 6, 1979) is an American former professional basketball player. As a member of the Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Association (NBA), he won NBA Finals, championships in 2009 and 2010 and was named ...

, Ginebra resident import

, and

Chinese Basketball Association The Chinese Basketball Association (), often abbreviated as the CBA, is the first-tier men's professional basketball league in China. The league is commonly known by fans as the CBA, and this acronym is even used in Chinese on a regular basis ...

import

Randolph Morris Randolph Albert Morris (born January 2, 1986) is an American former professional basketball player. Early life As a senior for Atlanta, Georgia's Landmark Christian High School, Morris nearly averaged a triple-double at 23.0 ppg, 16.0 rpg and 8. ...

. Notable local signings include former Ginebra guard Jett Manuel,

University of the Philippines The University of the Philippines (UP; ) is a Higher education in the Philippines#State universities and colleges, state university system in the Philippines. It is the country's national university, as mandated by List of Philippine laws, Re ...

playmaker Juan Gomez de Liano, Gabriel Banal,

, La Salle forward Santi Santillan, De La Salle-College of St. Benilde high flyer Justin Gutang and

Mono Vampire The Mono Vampire Basketball Club () is a Thailand, Thai professional basketball team that previously played in the ASEAN Basketball League. They have also participated in the Thailand Basketball League. It is owned by Mono 29, Mono Group, a Tha ...

guard Jason Brickman. The team also signed Fil-Am prospects Jeremiah Gray and Roosevelt Adams followed by

National University A national university is mainly a university created or managed by a government, but which may also at the same time operate autonomously without direct control by the state. In the United States, the term "national university" connotes the highe ...

big man Troy Rike to complete the lineup. Mighty Sports finished third winning over the

Homenetmen Lebanon Homenetmen Sports Association Lebanon (; ) is a Armenians in Lebanon, Lebanese-Armenian multi-sports club and scouting movement. Established in 1924, it is part of the worldwide pan-Armenian Homenetmen organization. Homenetmen Lebanon has had ...

in the third-place play off. They only lost once, to Lebanese club

Al Riyadi Al Riyadi Club Beirut (), commonly known simply as Al Riyadi, is a multi-sports club team based in Manara, a district in Beirut, Lebanon. Founded in 1934, the multi-sports club, which is mainly known for their basketball program, also plays pin ...

in the semifinal.

2020

Mighty Sports made their third appearance at the Dubai International Basketball Championship in 2020. They became the first team based outside the Middle East to win the tournament when they won 92–81 over

Al Riyadi Beirut Al Riyadi Club Beirut (), commonly known simply as Al Riyadi, is a multi-sports club team based in Manara, a district in Beirut, Lebanon. Founded in 1934, the multi-sports club, which is mainly known for their basketball program, also plays pin ...

in the final. Mighty Sports player

Renaldo Balkman Renaldo Miguel Balkman (born July 14, 1984) is a Puerto Rican professional basketball player for Vaqueros de Bayamón of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional (BSN). He played college basketball for the University of South Carolina before being sele ...

was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player.

2023

For the 2023 Dubai International Basketball Championship, Mighty Sport itself would not be returning. Instead Strong Group Realty of Jacob Lao, which Mighty and Acto City sponsored, competed in their stead. Strong Group, also coached by Charles Tiu, failed to repeat Mighty's feat, and finished as quarterfinalists.

Partnerships

Mighty Sports had a partnership with the

Bulacan Kuyas The Bulacan Kuyas are a Filipino professional basketball team based in Baliwag, Bulacan. The team competes in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) as a member of the league's North Division. The team most recently played its home ga ...

of the

Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League The Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) is a men's regional professional basketball league in the Philippines composed of 30 teams. Founded in 2017 by eight-division boxing world champion and then-Senator Manny Pacquiao, the MPBL is ...

(MPBL) in the 2018 MPBL Datu Cup as the team's corporate sponsor. In 2023, Mighty Sport sponsored Strong Group Realty's team which entered the 2023

Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...

International Basketball Championship.

Brand image

The sportswear manufacturing company behind Mighty Sports adopted its logo in July 2019 which is also used by its sports teams. It consist of an "M" with a three-pronged crown.

Roster

2020 Dubai International Basketball Championship

The following is the 12-man roster of the Mighty Sports-Go for Gold for the 2020 Dubai International Basketball Championship. , style="vertical-align:top;" , ; Head coach *

; Assistant coaches *

Will Voigt William Voigt (born August 18, 1976) is an American basketball coach who is currently serving as an assistant coach of the Brigham Young University (BYU) men's basketball team. Voigt has held various coaching roles at the professional, minor lea ...

* Dean Castaño *

Tyrone Tang Tyrone Conrad Uy "TY" Tang (born September 25, 1984) is a Filipino former professional basketball player and a current head coach. He last played for Mighty Sports of the Pilipinas Commercial Basketball League (PCBL). Tang played for the Rain ...

* Paolo Layug ; Team manager * Wowie Evangelista ---- ;Legend: *(C) Team captain *(I) Import *Nat. – Flags indicate national team
eligibility at FIBA sanctioned events *Age – describes age
on January 9, 2019

Past

;2019 William Jones Cup The following is the 12-man roster of the Mighty Sports-Go for Gold for the

. , style="vertical-align:top;" , ; Head coach *

; Assistant coaches * Woody Co * Dean Castaño ; Team manager * Wowie Evangelista ---- ;Legend: *(C) Team captain *(I) Import *Nat. – Flags indicate national team
eligibility at FIBA sanctioned events *Age – describes age
on January 9, 2019 ;2017 Dubai International Basketball Tournament The following was the 14-man roster of the PH-Mighty Sports for the 2017 Dubai International Basketball Tournament. , style="vertical-align:top;" , ; Head coach *

; Assistant coach *

Sandy Arespacochaga Alexander "Sandy" Arespacochaga (born April 6, 1977) is a former collegiate basketball player who currently serves as an assistant coach of Ateneo Blue Eagles, and TNT Tropang 5G. Career Ateneo Arespacocahaga played for the Blue Eagles from ...

* Moriah Gingerich * Mike Fermin ; Team manager * Jean Michael Alabanza ---- ;Legend: *(C) Team captain *(I) Import *Nat. – Flags indicate national team
eligibility at FIBA sanctioned events *Age – describes age
on February 18, 2017 ;2016 Merlion Cup The following was the 14-man roster of the PH-Mighty Sports for the 2016 Merlion Cup. , style="vertical-align:top;" , ; Head coach *

; Assistant coach * Dominic Uy * Moriah Gingerich ; Team manager * Jean Michael Alabanza ---- ;Legend: *(C) Team captain *(I) Import *Nat. – Flags indicate national team
eligibility at FIBA sanctioned events *Age – describes age
on September 21, 2016

Depth chart

;2016 William Jones Cup The following was the 14-man roster of the Philippine Mighty Sports for the 2016 William Jones Cup.http://www.slamonlineph.com/look-mighty-sports-ph-roster-for-2016-william-jones-cup-revealed Roster of Mighty Sports for 38th Jones Cup

Honors

Domestic

*Republica Cup :: Winners (4): 2013, 2014, 2016, 2018 *

:: Runner-up (1): 2016 Chairman's Cup

International Invitational

William Jones Cup The William Jones Cup International Basketball Tournament (), also known as the William Jones Cup, is an international basketball tournament organized by the Chinese Taipei Basketball Association (CTBA) held annually since 1977 in sports, 1977 ...

:: Winners (2):

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

Merlion Cup The Merlion Cup is an invitational association football, football tournament that was held in Singapore annually from 1982–1986, in 1992, 2009 and 2019 and 2023. Participants included full national sides, Olympic sides, Invitational XI's and ...

:: Runners-up (1):

Notable players

References

{{reflist, 2 Pilipinas Commercial Basketball League Basketball teams in the Philippines

Competitive record

Republica Cup

Pilipinas Commercial Basketball League

William Jones Cup

2016

2019

Merlion Cup

Dubai International Basketball Tournament

2017

2019

2020

2023

Partnerships

Brand image

Roster

2020 Dubai International Basketball Championship

Past

Depth chart

Honors

Domestic

International Invitational

Notable players

See also

References