Gilas beats Jordan

Myke Miravite

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Gilas sizzles in the 3rd quarter to zoom past Jordan, allowing the Philippine team to tie for top spot with Chinese Taipei

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) — Coming off what coach Chot Reyes described as “an ugly win” against Saudi Arabia last night, Gilas Pilipinas turned the tables with a 77-71 come-from-behind win against Jordan in the 27th FIBA Asia Championship Friday, August 2 at the Mall of Asia Arena.

The Philippine five, needing the assurance second win to move on to the next round, first gave the wild and roaring home fans a scare in the first half but bounced back just in time to stun the depleted West Asian side and join Chinese Taipei atop the Group A standings.

Down by 11 points midway the second quarter, the Philippines returned to the game after the break and never looked back as they put on a suffocating defense in the third and limited Jordan to only 9 points.

Jeff Chan and Jayson Castro, who combined for 33 points, then led Gilas to an inspired 17-0 run to turn a 6-point halftime deficit into a 53-42 advantage in just 5 minutes.

“Malaking tulong ‘yung crowd. Naboost nila ‘yung energy namin. Nandoon sila sa run namin kaya nakuha namin ang momentum,” Chan, who rifled in 5 of 7 shots from downtown said.

Tentative start for Gilas

Jordan – despite losing key players in Sam Daghlas, Zaid Abbas, and Rasheim Wright – started well in the game to take the driver’s seat for most of the first quarter but Marcus Douthit and Chan kept the Philippines in the game with timely attacks from inside and out.

Evangelos Alexandris’ wards then erected their biggest lead in the game at 11 behind sniper Wesam Al-Sous and Mohammed Hussein, the duo who made life hard for the Philippines in the second canto.

The third quarter, though, was an entirely different story.

After two free-throws by Mohammad Hadrab made it 42-36 for Jordan, the Philippines dropped a crippling bomb as they outscored their foes in the third, 24-9.

Jayson Castro poured in seven points in that game-turning stretch as he and Chan split up Jordan’s defense while Gabe Norwood did his job in containing naturalized player Jimmy Baxter, who exploded with 30 points against Chinese Taipei yesterday, to only 14.

“The key to our second-half comeback was our defense,” said Gilas mentor Reyes. “We’re still not happy. I think we should be happy on August 11, not now.”

Japeth Aguilar enetered the game for the first time and became an instant impact, hitting two mid-range jumpers to give the Philippines its first taste of a double-digit lead at 53-42, 2:15 remaining in the third.

No giving up

Jordan, however, threatened to get back into the game and silence the crowd in the fourth period.

Buried in a 57-47 hole at the start of the fourth quarter, Jordan showed resilience and chipped away at the Philippine lead little by little as Baxter asserted himself this time, putting up basket after basket but Gilas – fueled by the crowd – proved to be a tough customer for them in the dying minutes with team captain Jimmy Alapag connecting on a dagger of a three with 1:45 left.

But Jordan came to within five in the last 15 seconds, 73-68, but had to foul the Filipinos to buy some time and attempt an upset.

Alapag and Gary David iced the game, though, as they made their trips to the line to give the Philippines a comfortable 6-point win despite a buzzer-beating three by Jordan.

“The Philippines surprised. They played tough,” Hadrab, who led Jordan’s losing cause with 19 points and 3 rebounds, said.

Chan top-scored in the game with 17 points off five three-pointers while Castro finished with 16 markers and 4 rebounds in the game. Douthit and Ranidel De Ocampo also added 11 apiece for the Philippines.

Gilas Pilipinas will next face Chinese Taipei in their last fixture in Group A to formalize their entry into the next round. – Rappler.com

The scores:

Philippines (77) – Chan 17, Castro 16, Douthit 11, De Ocampo 11, Norwood 8, Aguilar 6, Alapag 3, Tenorio 3, David 2, Fonacier 0, Fajardo 0, Pingris 0

Jordan (71) – Hadrab 19, Baxter 14, Al-Sous 13, Hussein 9, Abdeen 6, Alhamarsheh 3, Zaghab 2, Abu Ruqayah 3, Abuqoura 2, Alnajjar 0, Alfaraj 0

Quarters: 16-20, 33-38, 57-47, 77-71

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