BENGALURU (India) - Shelby Cheslek tallied a historic triple-double to will Cathay Life past Cheongju KB, 73-68, to secure a third-place finish in the FIBA WBL Asia 2026 at the Sree Kanteerava Indoor Stadium, Sunday.
After coming just short of accomplishing the rare statistical feat against Denso Iris in the Semi-Finals last night, the veteran center got the job done this time and finished with 24 points, 16 rebounds, and 12 assists.
"I'm just so proud of our team today," she offered with a smile. "We wanted to come away with the medal, and we got that ... when it really counted, we came through. And that's why I'm so proud of our team."
She formalized her triple-double by hauling down a defensive board at the 7:28-mark of the payoff period, thus becoming the first-ever player in WBL Asia's growing history to notch such a remarkable achievement.
And the former Gonzaga Bulldogs made sure that the entire team would be celebrating, pulling off key plays down the stretch - none bigger than her kickout to Liu Hui-Ju for a booming corner triple for the 71-68 lead.
Cheslek then struck the dagger by herself, banking one in from close range - and amidst a phalanx of Stars defenders - with 35.9 seconds left, all but sealing the deal to bring the club back to the podium.
"I'm so happy and grateful that I have teammates that I can make passes like that to," said the 33-year-old, who had an efficiency of 41. "I said it yesterday: it's my favorite part of the game. It makes me so happy."
"Especially at the end, when I passed it to Skylar and she hit that big three, that was such a relief in the game," she added. "It's so much fun playing with them."
Penina Davidson backed her up with 20 points and 11 rebounds as Cathay Life leaned on their reinforcements en route to securing another medal after settling for a runner-up finish during the 2024 inaugurals.
But the locals contributed significantly as well, such as Liu (9 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists), lead floor general Chu Yu-Chin (7 points, 2 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal), and Hsu Yu-Lien (6 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists).
"The road here wasn't easy, that's why we thank everyone from the players, coaches, and staff. We put all of our heart and effort into this game, and it is the reason why we won," expressed head coach Cheng Hui-Yen.
Na Yunjeong led Cheongju with 22 points in the loss. Heo Yeeun supplied 18 points, 5 rebounds, and 8 assists, with Song delivering 15 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists. Japanese guard Sara Sakai chipped in 10 points.
Song herself gave the Stars the 68-66 lead with a reverse layup with 1;56 left, but Cheslek could no longer be denied as she scored and assisted in the 7-0 spurt to end the game in favor of the WSBL champions.
FIBA