In the rematch at home, Cantho Catfish must win to narrow the gap with the leading group. The Tay Do team also made adjustments in force when bringing Pham Hien Tai to replace Nguyen Thanh Tung in the match list.
The home team entered the game excitedly. The defense played solidly, while Darkhanbayar Belguundariya soon made his mark with 5 successful 3-point shots, helping Cantho Catfish finish the first quarter with a 28-18 advantage.
In the second half, coach Phan Thanh Canh's team continued to maintain the game. The reserve squad, including newcomer Pham Hien Tai, brought positive energy to help the home team maintain a 47-38 gap before the break.
A turning point appeared in the third quarter when center-forward Aula Maarufu Sumbry had to leave the field after a fourth personal foul. Taking advantage of this opportunity, Dakota Zinser and Nicholas Minh-Anh Courtney continuously scored points, helping Ho Chi Minh City Wings come back and lead 64-60.
In the final official round, Cantho Catfish brought Sumbry back to the field to reinforce the area under the basket. The two teams created an exciting chase and stalemate until the last seconds. Although Duong Duc Tri had a chance to finish the match, his unsuccessful finish caused the two teams to draw 81-81 and had to enter extra time.
In the first extra period, Khoa Tran scored two 3-point shots to help Ho Chi Minh City Wings take the lead. However, Huynh Thanh Tam and Darkhanbayar Belguundariya shone in turn, bringing Cantho Catfish to equalize 88-88, forcing the match to enter the second extra period.
Drama was pushed to a high in the final minutes of the second half of extra time. When there were only more than 10 seconds left, Darkhanbayar Belguundariya successfully executed two free throws to put Cantho Catfish ahead 98-95. Immediately after that, Albert Bordeos Opeña successfully stole the ball and then accurately executed two free throws, sealing a 100-95 victory for the home team.
With outstanding performances in both attack and defense, Aula Maarufu Sumbry was voted Player of the Game. Cantho Catfish's foreign soldier scored 20 points, had 12 rebounds and 3 blocks.
After the match, Sumbry shared: "This is a very meaningful victory. This result shows the progress of the whole team and we will continue to maintain the spirit of solidarity in the next matches.
The victory helped Cantho Catfish improve their record to 3 wins and 7 losses, continuing to rank 5th on the VBA 2026 rankings. Meanwhile, Ho Chi Minh City Wings has 4 wins and 4 losses, temporarily ranked 3rd.
Full VBA 2026 season on FPT Play.
