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Home ➤ Pilipinas Basketball News ➤ Dominican Republic edges out valiant Gilas Pilipinas, 87-81

FIBA World Cup 2023:

Dominican Republic edges out valiant Gilas Pilipinas, 87-81

August 25, 2023 – Philippine Arena

by Rock Punzalan
Dominican Republic edges out valiant Gilas Pilipinas, 87-81
player photo courtesy of FIBA
FIBA World Cup 2023: BOCAUE, Bulacan – Gilas Pilipinas put up a valiant fight but fell short in their first game of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023, losing 87-81 to the Dominican Republic in front of a record-breaking crowd of 38,115 at the Philippine Arena.

➤ NBA star Karl-Anthony Towns led the charge for the Dominican Republic, scoring 26 points and hauling in 10 boards, while guard Victor Liz had 18 points and 6 rebounds. Philippine NBA star Jordan Clarkson put up an impressive 28 points for the Gilas with 7 rebounds and 7 assists, while PBA legend Junemar Fajardo contributed 16 points and hauled in 7 rebounds.

➤ The Philippine basketball team led in rebounds, hauling 32 total to the Dominicans 26, but DR massacred them on the offensive boards, with the Dominicans enjoying a 17 to 3 advantage. The Dominicans also exploited Pilipinas basketball’s turnovers, scoring 26 off 19 Gilas turnovers, and fared better in second-chance points, making 15 against 2 of the Philippines.

➤ Both teams were evenly matched throughout the game, but it ultimately turned into a rivalry between the NBA’s finest. Despite Clarkson’s monstrous 28-point effort, he fouled out in the waning minutes of the fourth quarter, with Karl-Anthony Towns prevailing over him. Gilas was down 79-76 with only 3:32 remaining when he was disqualified for an offensive foul. It came after several questionable calls that hurt Gilas’ chances. In contrast, despite having shooting woes all night, Towns made most of his charity lane freebies, making 15 of 16 freethrow attempts.

➤ AJ Edu made a good account for himself, making a lot of key defensive stops to limit the effectiveness of Towns, while Kiefer Ravena also fared well in the minutes he was on the court, as did Dwight Ramos, who backstopped Gilas with 13 big points.

➤ The Gilas Pilipinas basketball team will next face a dangerous Angola squad that caused an early scare in their first-game loss to powerhouse Italy, 67-81. The tip-off between Group A rivals begins this Sunday at the Philippine Arena.

Game Scores:
Quarters: 22-18; 42-42; 66-64; 87-81.

dominican republic nt: 87

Towns 26, Liz 18, Feliz 12, Montero 6, Delgado 6, Peña 5, Vargas 5, Figueroa 5, Mendoza 2, Quiñones 2, Solano 0, Suero DNP.

gilas pilipinas: 81

Clarkson 28, Fajardo 16, Ramos 13, Edu 7, Pogoy 6, Thompson 5, Ravena 2, Abando 2, Aguilar 2, Sotto 0, Malonzo 0, Perez DNP.

Posted on August 26, 2023 - Philippine Arena

Written by Rock Punzalan for Philippine Basketball News Team

Home ➤ Pilipinas Basketball News ➤ FIBA OQT 2021: Serbia survives Gilas Pilipinas scare 83-76

FIBA OQT 2021:

Serbia survives Gilas Pilipinas scare, 83-76

June 30, 2021 – Belgrade, Serbia

by Rock Punzalan
Australia Boomers stops Gilas Pilipinas, 84-68
photo courtesy of FIBA

FIBA OQT News 2021: Serbia survived the gallant stand of Gilas Pilipinas, 83-76, this Wednesday at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Belgrade, Serbia. The game was dangerously close at crunch time as Gilas stole the lead, 73-74, with 3:50 left in the ballgame, but NBA star Boban Marjanovic’s clutch buckets towed the Serbs past the fighting Filipinos.

➤ Marjanovic powered the Serbs with 25 points and 11 rebounds, while Ognjen Dobric netted 16 points – with 12 coming from three-point shots. Gilas Pilipinas, on the other hand, relied on Ange Kouame’s 17 points and 7 boards.

➤ Three Filipinos contributed double digit buckets with Jordan Heading, Kai Sotto, and Justine Baltazar netting 13, 10, and 10 respectively.

➤ Serbia led big late in the game with a 61-47 advantage in the third quarter. Gilas, however, clawed back to tie the game in the 4th with a 67-67 score. Pilipinas could have taken the game in clutch after taking the lead 73-74, but failed to capitalize due to several miscues and missed offensive attempts.

➤ Serbia led in field goals with a 54% clip, while Gilas had 47%. The Serbs also dominated in the paint with 46 points against Gilas’ 28.

➤ Pilipinas missed the services of its main star and scorer Dwight Ramos due to groin injury, while Serbia did not play Nemanja Bjelica due to a leg injury.

➤ It is worth noting that the Filipinos are bannered by collegiate and some high-school standouts with an average age of 22, while the Serbs are represented by NBA and Euro-League veterans.

➤ Serbian Pro League MVP Filip Petrusev admitted that Serbia had a hard time matching-up against the Filipinos as he stated, “(Kouame and Sotto) gave us a hard time, especially without Bjelica out there on the court. We were forced to play a bit small than usual, and they attacked us especially from the four spot. They are talented, no question – and they gave us their all.”

➤ Philippines will next battle Dominican Republic this Thursday to stay alive in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament. 

Game Scores:
Quarters: 22-16, 45-34, 67-62, 83-76.

serbia nt: 83

Marjanovic 25, Dobric 16, Teodosic 13, Andjusic 12, Petrusev 8, Davidovac 5, Jovic 2, Milosavljevic 2, Avramovic 0.

gilas pilipinas: 76

Kouame 17, Heading 13, Sotto 10, Baltazar 10, Abarrientos 9, Tamayo 5, Navarro 4, Go 4, Nieto 2, Belangel 2, Chiu 0, .

Posted on June 30, 2021 - Alexander Nicolic Hall

Written by Rock Punzalan for Philippine Basketball News Team

Home ➤ Pilipinas Basketball News ➤ FIBA Asia Cup 2021: Pilipinas repeats over South Korea, 82-77

FIBA Asia Cup 2021 Qualifiers:

Gilas Pilipinas repeats over South Korea, 82-77

June 20, 2021 – Clark, Pampanga

by Rock Punzalan
Australia Boomers stops Gilas Pilipinas, 84-68
photo courtesy of FIBA

FIBA Asia Cup News 2021: Gilas Pilipinas five repeated over defiant South Korea, 82-77, to sweep the first round of the 2021 FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers this Sunday at the Angeles University Foundation Gym. This is the second win of the Filipinos against South Korea after their first match last Wednesday.

Notes:

➤ Dwight Ramos backstopped Gilas with 19 big buckets and 5 assists with five of nine treys made. Kai Sotto, RJ Abarrientos and Jordan Heading likewise contributed 10 points apiece to power the young Gilas squad.

➤ The Filipinos were on-fire from the rainbow country as they made 14 out of 37 three point bombs for a 38% clip. The game was close all throughout up until the last minute but the national’s firepower proved too much for the feisty Koreans.

➤ The game had some sort of personal rift as Korea’s coach Sang Hyun Cho mentioned last Wednesday that the first Gilas victory came courtesy of a “lucky” three point shot. SJ Belangel dropped that dagger trey to seal the nail-biter victory for the Pinoys. Obviously, Gilas mentor Tab Baldwin was none too happy and stated that the next game will not be as friendly.

➤ Meanwhile, South Korea relied on reinforcement Ra Guna who made 20 points and 13 boards, while Lee Hyunjung added 13 buckets and 8 rebounds.

➤ Pilipinas Basketball will reportedly face China NT in a practice game at the Clark bubble in preparation for their upcoming Serbia Olympic Qualifiers this month.

Game Scores:
Quarters: 20-18, 38-34, 56-54, 82-77.

gilas pilipinas: 82

Ramos 19, Sotto 10, Abarrientos 10, Heading 10, Navarro 8, Kouame 7, Baltazar 6, Belangel 6, Go 6, Nieto 6, Chiu 0, Tungcab 0.

South Korea NT: 77

Ra 20, Lee H. 13, Yang 12, Lee D. 9, Lee S. 8, Kim 8, Jeon 3, Byeon 2, Yeo 2, Ha 0, Moon 0, Kang 0.

Posted on June 20, 2021 - Angeles University Foundation Gym

Written by Rock Punzalan for Philippine Basketball News Team

Home ➤ Pilipinas Basketball News ➤ FIBA World Qualifiers 2018: Depleted Iran flattens Guiao-led Gilas, 78-70

FIBA World Qualifiers 2018:

Depleted Iran flattens Guiao-led Gilas, 78-70

December 3, 2018 – Mall of Asia Arena
by Rock Punzalan
Australia Boomers stops Gilas Pilipinas, 84-68
photo courtesy of FIBA

FIBA World Qualifiers News 2018: A depleted Iran NT flattened the Gilas Pilipinas squad coached by Yeng Guiao, 78-70 in the fifth window of the 2018 FIBA World Cup Qualifiers this Monday at the Mall of Asia Arena. Gilas lost to a weakened Iranian five without its’ main stars Hamed Haddadi and Samad Nikkhah Bahrami.

Notes:

➤ Iran’s Mohammad Jamshidi pummeled Gilas with 26 big buckets, with 20 coming off the 4th quarter combined with 7 assists while guard Behnam Yakhchali poured 21 points and 7 boards.

➤ The Filipinos squandered the sure chance to qualify for the World Cup as it fell to fourth place with a 5-5 slate, just below Japan. They need to win their two remaining games and hope that the Hayabusa Five loses at least a game to even out the rankings. Only the top-three teams will qualify for the FIBA Worlds and the Philippines may now need a miracle to advance.

➤ Home-court advantage did not work wonders for RP Five this time around, as Guiao’s system is yet to be proven effective in international tournaments. To sum it all up: Gilas was relegated to fifth place in the recent Asian Games with Jordan Clarkson in tow, lost to a mediocre Kazakhstan team without a legitimate star, and fell twice to an Iranian team that never fielded the behemoth Hamed Haddadi.

➤ If there was any consolation for Guiao, it was the extremely short preparation time of Gilas. This resulted to a disjointed team pitted against Asia’s powerhouse squads with less than a decade of team chemistry. However, Yeng could have opted to field-in the battle-tested Gilas five, but chose to play with an untested roster of mostly aging cagers instead.

➤ Compounding the Gilas hullabaloo was the preposterous exclusion of vital cog Andray Blatche. The former New Jersey Nets center would have terrorized Iran and Kazakhstan in the paint and be unstoppable from the perimeter. Blatche’s defense also would have been a lethal weapon for Gilas, but his unceremonial ejection from the roster proved fatal for the Filipinos.

➤ Meanwhile, Jayson Castro, who just back from FIBA suspension, powered Gilas with 19 markers and 5 caroms while Christian Standhardinger finished with 17 points and 8 boards.

➤ The Philippine basketball team will next face Qatar and Kazakhstan in the sixth window both in away games to continue Gilas’ journey in the FIBA World Cup qualifiers.

Game Scores:
Quarters: 19-20, 35-39, 50-54, 78-70.

iran nt: 78

Jamshidijafarabadi 26, Yakhchalidehkordi 21, Mirzaeitalarposhti 11, Arghavan 8, Hassanzadeh 7, Mozafarivanani 3, Hosseizadeh 2, Sedighi 0, Davoudichegani 0, Torabi 0, Rezaeifar 0.

gilas pilipinas: 70

Castro William 19, Standhardinger 17, Lassiter 12, Fajardo 8, Wright 4, Belga 3, Rosario 3, Santos 2, Aguilar 2, Tenorio 0, Norwood 0, Thompson 0.

Posted on December 4, 2018 - Mall of Asia Arena

Written by Rock Punzalan for Philippine Basketball News Team

Home ➤ Pilipinas Basketball News ➤ FIBA World Qualifiers 2018: Disaster as Gilas falls to lowly Kazakhstan NT

FIBA World Qualifiers 2018:

Disaster as Gilas falls to lowly Kazakhstan NT

November 30, 2018 – Mall of Asia Arena
by Rock Punzalan

FIBA World Qualifiers News 2018: It was a disaster for Philippine basketball as Gilas Pilipinas fell to lowly Kazakhstan NT, 92-88 in the continuation of the FIBA World Cup qualifiers this Friday at the Mall of Asia Arena. The unnerving defeat relegated RP Five to 4th place in Group F and in danger of elimination, losing to a mediocre squad with a four-game losing streak.

Notes:

➤ Stanley Pringle led the losing Gilas with 29 points, while center Junemar Fajardo had 14 points and 13 caroms.

➤ The gamble of Coach Yeng Guiao to utilize an untested roster resulted to the shock loss, with the bigs being unable to defend well in the perimeter. It only highlighted the absence of dominant and mobile big man Andray Blatche, whom Guiao conspicuously left out of the roster. Blatche’s mobility would have given Kazakhstan nightmares. Also absent were Jayson Castro and Troy Rosario who are both serving their FIBA suspensions.

➤ Christian Stanhardinger is also set to replace Pringle as the lone naturalized player in the Pinoy lineup.

➤ Kazakhstan’s Alexander Zhigulin was virtually unstoppable from the three-point territory, converting 6 treys to finish with a total of 30 points, while Anton Bykov added 20 buckets and 9 boards.

➤ The Kazakhstan five is virtually the same squad whom the Pinoys handily beat time and again in countless international tourneys. Worst, they are missing the services of their star player Anton Ponomarev who reportedly begged-off to concentrate in professional basketball.

➤ The Philippine Basketball Team is now tied with Japan NT with identical 5-4 win-loss slate. They must win all their remaining games against Iran, Qatar, and Kazakhstan or risk getting booted out of the qualifiers.

➤ The Filipinos will next battle Iran NT for a do-or-die rematch on Monday, December 3.

Game Scores:
Quarters: 17-18, 40-39, 65-62, 92-88

kazakhstan nt: 92

Zhigulin 30, Bykov 20, Yergali 12, Murzagaliyev 11, Kuanov 8, Bazhin 7, Marchuk 4, Gavrilov 0, Lapchenko 0, Chsherbak 0.

gilas pilipinas: 88

Pringle 29, Fajardo 14, Lassiter 13, Tenorio 8, Norwood 7, Thompson 6, Wright 5, Aguilar 4, Erram 2, Slaughter 0, Belga 0, Cabagnot 0.

Posted on December 1, 2018 - Mall of Asia Arena

Written by Rock Punzalan for Philippine Basketball News Team

Home ➤ Pilipinas Basketball News ➤ FIBA World Qualifiers 2018: Guiao names Gilas Final 12 versus Kazakhstan

FIBA World Qualifiers 2018

Guiao names Gilas Final 12 versus Kazakhstan

November 28, 2018

by Rock Punzalan

FIBA World Qualifiers News 2018: Coach Yeng Guiao finalized the Gilas Pilipinas Final 12 that will battle Kazakhstan in the fifth window of the FIBA World Cup Qualifiers this Saturday at the Mall of Asia Arena. The Philippines is currently ranked 3rd in the heap with a 5-3 slate, while the Kazakhs are at fifth with a 3-5 record.

Notes:

➤ The Filipinos will not have a legitimate naturalized player as Guiao opted to not include NBA veteran and Gilas mainstay Andray Blatche in the fifth window roster. Blatche is also coming off the suspension sanctioned by FIBA to Gilas players after the infamous RP-Australia brawl.

➤ The magic twelve of Guiao includes PBA behemoths Junemar Fajardo, Greg Slaughter, Poy Erram and Japeth Aguilar. The guard rotation will have Stanley Pringle, LA Tenorio, Alex Cabagnot and Scottie Thompson. Rounding-up the cast will be forwards Gabe Norwood, Matthew Wright, Marcio Lassiter, and Beau Belga.

➤ Out of the final line-up were Jayson Castro and Troy Rosario, both serving FIBA suspensions, and Ricci Rivero, Kai Sotto, Ian Sangalang, Paul Lee, Arwind Santos, and Christian Stanhardinger.

➤ Guiao also stated that Stanhardinger will be the likely naturalized player for the next game against Iran. Pringle and Stanhardinger are considered naturalized due to a FIBA residency ruling despite both being legitimate Filipinos.

➤ The Pinoys are in a must-win situation against Kazakhstan as they are in a precarious third place spot in the qualifiers. A loss may put them behind Qatar or Japan, who are both trailing behind at 4th place. Only the first three qualifiers from Asia will advance to the World Cup 2019.

Posted on November 29, 2018

Written by Rock Punzalan for Philippine Basketball News Team

Home ➤ Pilipinas Basketball News ➤ Philippine Basketball 2018: Lebanon overpowers Gilas, 71-60

Philippine Basketball 2018:

Lebanon overpowers Gilas, 71-60

November 25, 2018 – Meralco Gym

by Rock Punzalan

Philippine Basketball News 2018: Lebanon national team overpowered Gilas Pilipinas, 71-60 once again to leave the Filipinos win-less in their tuneup games against the Western Asian power as buildup for the FIBA World Qualifiers at the Meralco Gym this Sunday.

Notes:

➤ Pilipinas ended its’ campaign with a 1-3 win-loss record, absorbing two losses against the Lebanese while breaking even with the Jordanians.

➤ RP Five will face Kazakhstan this Friday, November 30 at the Mall of Asia Arena in continuation of their FIBA World Qualifiers series.

Posted on November 25, 2018 - Meralco Gym

Written by Rock Punzalan for Philippine Basketball News Team

Home ➤ Pilipinas Basketball News ➤ Philippine Basketball 2018: Lebanon subdues Gilas, 74-68

Philippine Basketball 2018:

Lebanon subdues Gilas, 74-68

November 23, 2018 – Epsilon Chi Center, UP Diliman

by Rock Punzalan

Philippine Basketball News 2018: Lebanon national team subdued Gilas Pilipinas, 74-68 to take Game 1 of their tuneup game for the FIBA World Qualifiers this Friday at Epsilon Chi Center in UP Diliman. Ali Haidar led the Lebanese side with his 20 buckets, while Ater Majok had 13 markers.

Notes:

➤ Pilipinas basketball team managed to trim the gap from 19 points deficit to a single digit at 59-60, courtesy of an Arwind Santos layup, but the Lebanese side kept their composure en route to victory.

➤ Japeth Aguilar led the Filipinos with his 16 points as San Miguel duo of Marcio Lassiter and Junemar Fajardo also finished with 13 and 9 points each.

➤ Missing from the action are the other members of Gilas pool which includes Christian Stanhardinger, Kai Sotto, Scottie Thompson, Alex Cabagnot and Beau Belga.

➤ Gilas and Lebanon will face each other once more for Game 2 this Sunday.

Game Scores:
Quarters: 20-16, 44-28, 57-55, 74-68

lebanon: 74

Haidar 20, Majok 13, Saoud 10, Abdel Nour 9, Bawji 6, Mehzer 5, Rustom 4, Akl 3, Ibrahim 2, Fares 0, Khalil 0, Tabet 0.

gilas pilipinas: 68

Aguilar 16, Lassiter 11, Fajardo 9, Santos 6, Rosario 5, Tenorio 4, Slaughter 4, Pringle 4, Lee 3, Wright 3, Rivero 2, Thompson 1, Erram 0, Castro 0.

Posted on November 24, 2018 - Epsilon Chi Center, UP Diliman

Written by Rock Punzalan for Philippine Basketball News Team

Home ➤ Pilipinas Basketball News ➤ Philippine Basketball 2018: Gilas blasts Jordan in Game 2, 82-73

Philippine Basketball 2018:

Gilas blasts Jordan in Game 2, 82-73

November 21, 2018 – Meralco Gym
by Rock Punzalan

Philippine Basketball News 2018: Gilas Pilipinas blasted Jordan national team 82-73, in Game 2 of their exhibition game as buildup for the FIBA World Qualifying Tournament this Wednesday at the Meralco Gym. The game was unceremoniously ended as Jordan walked out of the playing court after a verbal altercation between coach Yeng Guiao and Jordan mentor Joey Steibing.

Notes:

➤ A near brawl was triggered after a Jordanian cager threw a ball at Scottie Thompson during a dead ball. Poy Erram also had an altercation with another Jordanian after a rebound play.

➤ Tempers flared for Jordan after the Philippine basketball team rallied from a 19 point deficit, and continued by mounting a double-digit lead thanks to a 31-4 unanswered blast.

➤ The game was halted with 6:23 remaining in the fourth quarter as entire Jordan basketball team headed straight into the locker room. Gilas was officially awarded the game by default.

➤ Gilas will play Lebanon NT this Friday and on Saturday to continue their buildup for the upcoming FIBA qualifiers.

Posted on November 21, 2018 - Meralco Gym

Written by Rock Punzalan for Philippine Basketball News Team

Home ➤ Pilipinas Basketball News ➤ Pilipinas Basketball 2018: Australia Boomers stops Gilas Pilipinas, 84-68

Philippine Basketball 2018:

Gilas falls to Jordan quintet, 92-98

November 19, 2018 – Meralco Gym

by Rock Punzalan

Philippine Basketball News 2018: Gilas Pilipinas fell to Jordan national team, 92-98 in a tuneup game for the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament this Monday at the Meralco Gym. Veteran Zaid Abbas led the Jordanians with 24 buckets, while Mousa Al Awadi and Abu Hawwas Amin chipped-in 18 and 16 points each.

Notes:

➤ Christian Standhardinger dropped 21 points for the Philippine Basketball Team, while hitman Marcio Lassiter made 14. Coming back from injury, Jayson Castro also added 13 points for the Filipinos. It was also the first game as a Gilas senior for Ricci Rivero, who chimed-in four buckets total.

➤ Coach Yeng Guiao fielded in 12 players out of the 20-man pool total as the majority of the Nationals are still playing in the PBA Governors’ Cup playoffs. Missing out from the pool were Paul Lee, Ian Sangalang, Scottie Thompson, Japeth Aguilar, Greg Slaughter, LA Tenorio, Stanley Pringle, and Kai Sotto.

➤ The 7-foot-1 Sotto did not suit for the game due to academic responsibilities.

➤ Gilas and Jordan will resume hostilities on Wednesday, November 21 for their second exhibition game.

Game Scores:
Quarters: 25-13, 46-44, 70-67, 98-82.

jordan: 98

Abbas 24, Al Awadi 18, Amin 16, Dentmon 11, Hussein 10, Yousef 8, Obeid 8, Kanaan 3, Sinan 0, Abdeen 0, Dasuq 0, Ahmad 0, Hasoneh 0.

gilas pilipinas: 92

Standhardinger 21, Lassiter 14, Castro 13, Wright 7, Belga 7, Rosario 7, Fajardo 6, Santos 5, Cabagnot 5, Rivero 4, Erram 4, Norwood 0.

Posted on November 19, 2018 - Meralco Gym

Written by Rock Punzalan for Philippine Basketball News Team

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