MANILA, Philippines — History written anew for Philippine basketball.
The PH Under-16 basketball team barged into the 2014 World U-17 Championship in Dubai after besting Chinese Taipei, 77-72 in the FIBA Asia U-16 Championship at the Azadi Sports Complex in Tehran, Iran on Thursday, October 3.
Trailing by 8 at 62-70 with less than 6 minutes remaining, the Philippines showed their fighting heart and rallied back as Jolo Mendoza and Mike Nieto conspired to bring the nationals within 1, 71-72 with 1:29 left.
After bungled attempts from Chien-Chih Huang, Mendoza buried a huge trey that pushed the nationals ahead, 74-72, with 1:19 to go.
Chinese Taipei had several opportunities to tie the game but Huang and Po-Hung Chen fired blanks, which translated into a Mike Nieto put back on the other end to extend the Philippines’ lead to 76-72 with only 35 ticks left.
Chinese Taipei was not able to convert again as reserve guard Lorenzo Navarro sealed the game with a free throw to complete the resounding comeback.
Mendoza, the 2013 SEABA U-16 Most Valuable Player, finished with a game-high 28 points and added 5 rebounds. Mike Nieto wound up with another strong performance consisting of 17 points and 14 rebounds, while Paul Desiderio added 8 markers and 15 boards.
Coach Jamike Jarin’s cagers led for most of the match until Chinese Taipei launched a 9-0 blast anchored on their torrid shooting from the outside to take control at the end of the 3rd period, 59-54.
Their explosion continued early in the 4th, extending the lead to 70-62, before the Philippines pounded them with a 15-2 blitzkrieg and booked a slot to the 3rd U-17 World Championships.
It will be their first appearance in the event after two 4th place finishes in the 2009 and 2011 editions of the FIBA Asia U-16 tournament. Only two berths are allotted for Asia and the first slot was grabbed by China after dispatching Japan, 99-78 in the other semis pairing.
The Philippines also avenged their 90-95 defeat against the same team in the group stages.
Now assured of the silver medal, Philippines will take on reigning two-time champion China tonight in the championship.
The victory came two months after Gilas Pilipinas successfully made it to the 2014 FIBA World Cup in Spain after finishing with a silver in the FIBA Asia Championship here. – Rappler.com
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