Philippine Basketball News Team
The Nation's Basketball News

Tag: Japeth Aguilar

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 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 ➤ PBA News ➤ PBA Semifinals 2018: Magnolia boots out Ginebra, 112-108

PBA Semifinals 2018:

Magnolia boots out Ginebra, 112-108

November 16, 2018 – Ynares Center

by Rock Punzalan

PBA Semifinals News 2018: Magnolia Hotshots booted out Barangay Ginebra, 112-108 to book a Finals ticket in the 2018 PBA Governors’ Cup this Friday at the Ynares Center. Import Romeo Travis bucked a hamstring injury to lead the Hotshots with 50 points and 13 boards, while Ian Sangalang made 14 points and 6 rebounds.

Notes:

➤ With 10 ticks remaining in regulation, both Scottie Thompson and Joe Devance miffed their clutch trey attempts and failed to salvage Ginebra in crunch time. The Gin Kings were effectively eliminated from campaigning for a third straight title this season.

➤ Justin Brownlee backstopped the losing Gin Kings with 32 points, 9 caroms and 7 dimes, while Japeth Aguilar chipped-in 25 buckets and 14 rebounds.

➤ Magnolia will get a long rest as they await the other finalist between the Meralco Bolts and the Alaska Aces, who will battle in Game 4 of their semifinals series on Saturday, November 17, at the Cuneta Astrodome.

Game Scores:
Quarters: 20-27, 51-53, 81-79, 112-108.

magnolia: 112

Travis 50, Sangalang 14, Lee 11, Jalalon 9, Barroca 8, Herndon 8, Simon 6, Dela Rosa 4, Reavis 2, Brondial 0, Melton 0.

ginebra: 108

Brownlee 32, Aguilar 25, Tenorio 12, Thompson 12, Devance 11, Slaughter 7, Mercado 5, Mariano 2, Chan 2, Ferrer 0.

Posted on November 16, 2018 - Ynares Center

Written by Rock Punzalan for Philippine Basketball News Team

More PBA News
Home ➤ PBA News ➤ PBA Semifinals 2018: Ginebra stays alive, decks Magnolia, 107-103

PBA Semifinals 2018:

Ginebra stays alive, decks Magnolia, 107-103

November 14, 2018 – Araneta Coliseum

by Rock Punzalan

PBA Semifinals News 2018: Barangay Ginebra stayed alive, after defeating the Magnolia Hotshots, 107-103 in Game 3 of their 2018 PBA Governors’ Cup Semifinals tiff this Wednesday at the Araneta Coliseum. Star import Justin Brownlee wowed with career-high 46 points and 19 boards for Ginebra.

Notes:

➤ LA Tenorio finished with 14 points and 5 rebounds. He also shot the clutch floater off Paul Lee’s turnover, with 14 seconds left to lift the Gin Kings, 105-103.

➤ Scottie Thompson also added 15 buckets and 7 caroms, while Japeth Aguilar finished with 11 markers and 7 rebounds.

➤ Ginebra bucked an 18 point Magnolia half-time lead and survived another day in their Semifinals series. Magnolia led the Gin Kings in most of the game stats, but Ginebra outpaced the Hotshots in charities, hitting 32 of 45 foul throws at 71 percent, compared to Magnolia’s 11 of 18 free-throw shots made at 61%. 11/18 (61%).

➤ Mark Barroca led the Hotshots with 19 points and 5 rebounds, while Lee made 17 points. Import Romeo Travis was the missing link for Magnolia, who managed to register only 12 points and 12 boards total.

➤ Magnolia is still leading the series at 2-1, and Barangay is in a must-win situation in their upcoming face-off this Friday, November 16 for Game 4 of their Semifinals showdown at the Ynares Center.

Game Scores:
Quarters: 23-22, 41-58, 79-81, 107-103.

ginebra: 107

Brownlee 46, Thompson 15, Tenorio 14, Aguilar 11, Devance 8, Chan 5, Slaughter 3, Mercado 3, Caperal 0, Ferrer 0.

magnolia: 103

Barroca 19, Lee 17, Sangalang 16, Travis 12, Brondial 10, Jalalon 10, Dela Rosa 8, Simon 5, Reavis 3, Melton 3, Herndon 0, Gamalinda 0.

Posted on November 15, 2018 - Araneta Coliseum

Written by Rock Punzalan for Philippine Basketball News Team

Home ➤ PBA News ➤ PBA Semifinals 2018: Magnolia halts Ginebra, 101-97

PBA Semifinals 2018:

Magnolia halts Ginebra, 101-97

November 12, 2018 – Araneta Coliseum

by Rock Punzalan

PBA Semifinals News 2018: Magnolia Hotshots halted Barangay Ginebra, 101-97 to surge ahead to a 2-0 lead of their Semifinals showdown in the 2018 PBA Governors’ Cup this Monday at the Araneta Coliseum. Reinforcement Romeo Travis led the Hotshots anew with his 25 buckets, 12 caroms, and 7 dimes, while Ian Sangalang added 17 markers.

Notes:

➤ Paul Lee also contributed 14 points as well as Rome dela Rosa who made 11 buckets for Magnolia.

➤ Magnolia had better command and defense of the court, making 26 assists total against 19 by Ginebra. They also stole the ball 10 times opposed to the Gin Kings 6 steals, resulting to 23 Ginebra turnovers total.

➤ Coach Tim Cone of Ginebra was ejected in the third quarter after incurring two technical fouls.

➤ Import Justin Brownlee made 31 buckets, 12 boards and 7 assists for the Gin Kings, while LA Tenorio and Japeth Aguilar chipped-in 15 markers apiece.

➤ Ginebra will need to win their next face-off with Magnolia on Wednesday, November 14 at the Araneta Coliseum to keep their hopes alive in the Best-of-Five Semis series.

Game Scores:
Quarters: 21-18, 47-46, 75-68, 101-97.

NLEX: 101

Travis 25, Sangalang 17, Lee 14, Dela Rosa 11, Barroca 9, Jalalon 8, Reavis 6, Simon 5, Melton 5, Herndon 1.

ALASKA: 97

Brownlee 31, Aguilar 15, Tenorio 15, Slaughter 14, Mercado 7, Thompson 7, Mariano 4, Caguioa 2, Chan 2, Ferrer 0.

Posted on November 13, 2018 - Araneta Coliseum

Written by Rock Punzalan for Philippine Basketball News Team

Home ➤ PBA News ➤ PBA Semifinals 2018: Magnolia frustrates Ginebra, 106-98

PBA Semifinals 2018:

Magnolia frustrates Ginebra, 106-98

PBA Semifinals 2018: Magnolia frustrates Ginebra, 106-98

November 10, 2018 – Ynares Center

by Rock Punzalan

PBA Semifinals News 2018: Magnolia Hotshots frustrated Barangay Ginebra, 106-98 to win Game 1 of their 2018 PBA Governors’ Cup Semifinals showdown at the Ynares Center this Saturday. Import Romeo Travis waxed hot for the Hotshots with his 37 buckets and 16 boards, while star guard Paul Lee registered 27 markers.

Notes:

➤ Magnolia manageably stayed ahead of Ginebra for most of the 2nd half, until the Gin Kings got to within two points, 93-91 with 1:57 seconds remaining. However, Lee showed his clutch arsenal as he dropped a trey and an ‘and-one’ in succession to push the Hotshots ahead 106-96, with 56 seconds left in the ballgame.

➤ Overall, the Hotshots shot better from the three-point territory with 10 of 28 treys total (35%), against Ginebra’s 7 of 25 three-point shots (28%).

➤ Import Justin Brownlee backstopped the defeated Barangay with 37 points, 14 caroms, and 8 dimes while high flyer Japeth Aguilar mustered 18 points and 6 boards.

➤ Ginebra and Magnolia will resume hostilities on Monday, November 12 at Araneta Coliseum for Game 2 of their Semis matchup.

Game Scores:
Quarters: 31-39, 63-55, 86-76, 106-98.

magnolia: 106

Travis 37, Lee 27, Melton 11, Sangalang 7, Dela Rosa 6, Barroca 6, Jalalon 5, Pascual 4, Herndon 3, Reavis 0, Brondial 0.

ginebra: 98

Brownlee 37, Aguilar 18, Tenorio 13, Slaughter 8, Thompson 7, Chan 5, Ferrer 4, Mariano 4, Mercado 2.

Posted on November 11, 2018 - Ynares Center

Written by Rock Punzalan for Philippine Basketball News Team

 up