YOKKAICHI, Japan — Alas Pilipinas mounted a valiant fightback in the fourth set, but its late surge fell short as it bowed to Chinese Taipei, 25-21, 20-25, 17-25, 27-29, to finish the group stage of the men’s indoor volleyball tournament at the 20th Asian Games Aichi-Nagoya 2026 winless on Tuesday at Park Arena Komaki here.
The Philippines, which battled back from a 16-19 deficit in the fourth set, ended Pool D in last place with a 0-3 record.
Trailing by three late in the fourth set, team captain Bryan Bagunas took matters into his own hands, spearheading a 3-0 run that pulled Alas level at 19-all and revived its hopes of forcing a decider.
The Philippines traded blows with Chinese Taipei before another Bagunas attack gave Alas a 23-22 lead. But the seesaw battle continued, sending the fourth set into deuce as both sides fought for control down the stretch.
Chinese Taipei, however, repeatedly gained the upper hand in the extension before Chang Yu-Sheng delivered back-to-back attacks to break a 27-all deadlock and seal the victory after nearly two hours of play.
Bagunas paced Alas with 17 points on 13 attacks, two aces, and two blocks, while Joshua Magalaman added 16 points on 11 attacks and five rejections.
Leo Ordiales and Marck Espejo chipped in eight and six points, respectively, in the defeat.
The Philippines will begin its classification-round campaign on October 1, taking on the third seed from Pool B.
China and South Korea, who will play later in the day, will advance to the quarterfinals with identical 2-0 records, while Chinese Taipei will also head to the classification round after finishing third with a 1-2 slate.
Chang Yu-Chen led Chinese Taipei with 24 points, while Chang Yu-Sheng added 19 points.
