Gilas Girls crush Thailand by 45 in SEABA U18 opener 

MANILA, Philippines – Margarett Villanueva put on a shooting clinic for the Gilas Pilipinas U18 women’s team as they made easy work of Thailand in their SEABA U18 opener, 103-58, on Friday, May 24 at the Ratchaburi Gymnasium in Thailand. 

With the all-important win, the Philippines booked a ticket to the FIBA U18 Women’s Asia Cup Division B in Shenzhen, China next month. 

Villanueva exploded for a game-high 25 points on 9-of-14 shooting, including a near-perfect 4-of-5 clip from long range. 

With Gilas Girls leading by only 7 points at the end of the first quarter, 23-16, Villanueva took over and went on a personal 7-0 run in just a minute and 9 seconds to extend their lead to double figures, 30-16.

The Philippines maintained its double-digit advantage the rest of the way, before extending it to its largest at 45 points off a triple by Villanueva in the dying seconds of the lopsided affair. 

Aside from Villanueva, two more players scored in double-digits for the Philippines, with Naomi Panganiban and Gabby Ramos firing 16 points each.

All 12 players fielded in by Gilas Girls head coach Julie Amos managed to put up a basket in the blowout win that saw the Philippines shoot 40% from the field and 84% from the foul line.

Natsuda Boonpech topscored for Thailand with 16 points, but shot a dismal 5-of-20 field goal clip.

The Philippines’ stifling defense forced Thailand to commit 28 turnovers and go 0-of-22 from beyond the arc. 

Gilas Girls will look to make it two in a row when they face Malaysia – which has already qualified for the FIBA U18 Women’s Asia Cup Division A – on Saturday, May 25 at 3 pm. 

The Scores

Philippines 103 – Villanueva 25, Panganiban 16, Ramos 16, Fajardo 7, Abong 7, Canindo 6, Quinte 6, Rodriguez 5, Duenas 5, Impreso 4, Lapasaran 3, Reyes 3.

Thailand 58 – Boonpech 16, Oudnun 14, Sithisamarng 9, Patthanauckkaranon 6, Damrongjit 6, Khamkaew 4, Kanram 3, Bhuket 0, Pornsakunchai 0, Watthananonkasem 0, Matanboon 0.

Quarters: 23-16, 52-30, 73-47, 103-58. 

– Rappler.com