By Ken Marantz
OCA Media
Nagoya, Japan, September 25, 2026: Japan's top anime creator could hardly have scripted it better.
Yuki Hirashita provided a storybook ending when the Aichi Prefecture native sank the basket that secured a historic gold medal for Japan in women’s 3x3 basketball at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.
Hirashita nailed Japan’s seventh 2-pointer of the women’s final to give the host nation a 21-11 victory over the Philippines on Friday night at the temporary outdoor court near Kinjo Futo Station.
For Japan, it was its first medal after taking the silver and bronze, respectively, in the previous two editions of the Asian Games after the sport was added to the program at Jakarta 2018.
Hirashita led Japan with nine points, while Sakura Horiuchi added eight as they combined with Fataoumanana Nishi and Haruka Yamamoto to relegate the basketball-mad Philippines to the silver medal.
Hirashita had three 2-pointers, with her final one with :31 left giving Japan the crucial 21st point that immediately ended the contest.
“I knew that a 2-pointer would provide the knockout punch, so I thought to just be aggressive and go for it,” said Hirashita, who hails from the city of Nagakute, about 20 kilometers east of Nagoya.
Hirashita, along with Nishi, plays for the local Toyota Boshoku Sunshine Rabbits of Japan’s pro W-League.
The Philippines failed to hit any of its five 2-point shots, relying more on a strategy of feeding the ball into the paint to 1.83-meter Quinn dela Rosa, who had a team-high six points.
The inability, however, to stop Japan’s aerial barrage from beyond the arc proved decisive.
“They just got everything really,” the Philippines’ Detroit-born Amyah Espanol said of Japan.
“They have the intensity on defense, the shooting, they were hitting a lot of tough shots. All we could do was execute our defensive game plan, and they still made their shots. So, it’s just basketball.”
Joining dela Rosa and Espanol on the medal podium were Kennan Ka and Maria Pasilang.
“We really tried our hardest,” Espanol said. “We’re glad we get to bring something back to the Philippines to show for it.”
*In the bronze medal game, Choi Yesuel sank four 2-pointers and finished with 10 points as Korea defeated Thailand 21-8.
The game ended with 2:24 left on a 2-pointer by Heo Yoojung, who scored seven points. The other team members were Kim Jeongeun and Song Yunha.
*Earlier in the day, Japan swept past Korea 19-8 in the semifinals, avenging a loss to the Koreans in the group stage. The Philippines downed Thailand 13-8 to advance to the gold medal match.
Japan had beaten China, winner of the first two Asian Games competitions, in the quarterfinals on Thursday.