BENGALURU (India) - Wherever basketball may take her career, Penina Davidson will always look back to Chinese Taipei with so much fondness.
Simply because they provided the opportunity to step out of her comfort zone, eventually proving herself more than capable after contributing to the lore of Cathay Life in the Women's Super Basketball League.
The 31-year-old has been playing professionally since 2018, but it wasn't until seven years later that she would receive a call of a lifetime when the Tigers wanted to bring her in to serve as one of their reinforcements.
Davidson went on to put pen to paper, marking the very first time that the former California Golden Bear took her talents beyond Oceania after spending most of her career between Australia and New Zealand.
"It's beautiful, the food is beautiful, the people are beautiful," the 2025 WSBL champion expressed. "It's a really cool little spot, and a little part of the world. So I'm pretty grateful to get this opportunity again."
Since playing in Chinese Taipei, Davidson has flown out of Asia when she joined the MGS Panserraikos Serres in Greece earlier this year, yet another major feat as it was her maiden campaign in Europe.
"Just a chance to see the world and hang out with some cool people. It's really kind of where my career's at at the moment, just to get to do these quick seasons and travel the world," she reflected.
Currently, she's back with Cathay Life, with the goal to succeed once more in the WSBL. But before that, they're all here in this sprawling Indian city, as one of the 6 competitors in the ongoing WBL Asia 2026.
Davidson is rejoining a Tigers team that has entered its third appearance in as many editions of the premier competition featuring champion ball clubs across the continent, becoming the first to do so.
"It's just really cool just to play against some of the top teams in Asia. Just the experience alone is pretty gratifying. It would be cool to just give it a good shot," she said of the experience the league brings.
And on Wednesday, they nailed their first win in the Bengaluru showpiece, scoring an 85-75 decision against the Akari Sparks of the Philippines which also revived their hopes of advancing to the Semi-Finals.
The New Zealand women's team standout starred in their bounce-back from losing to Sichuan Yuanda Meile the day before, leading all scorers with 22 points alongside 8 rebounds as she led the strong closeout.
Cathay Life had themselves a long battle especially when their WMPBL counterparts rallied back from down 20 and even took the lead during the fourth, before she powered the 11-0 rally to finish the game.
Still, she was pleased not only with how they heeded to the challenge, but to how good the quality of women's basketball has gotten in this part of the globe - something she knows so well, being a FIBA veteran.
"I like playing in Asia. There's such good basketball. They work really hard - Chinese Taipei, China, Philippines, Japan, Korea. It's always such a fun game," said Davidson after the bout at the Sree Kanteerava Indoor Stadium.
Now, she gets to be a part of WBL Asia, hoping of course to author a success story - not just for herself, but for a Cathay Life team that's become family.
"It would be awesome," the 2019 WNBL titlist said. "This is such a good group of girls and it's really cool hanging out with them. We don't always speak the same language but we find a way to have a couple of laughs."
"It has just been cool to hang out with these girls, and get a couple of games under our belt."
FIBA