MANILA, Philippines – Gilas Pilipinas fizzled out in the fourth quarter and bowed to Senegal, 72-64, for its first loss in the Heyuan WUS International Basketball Tournament in China on Friday, August 4.

A day after pulling off a convincing 76-65 win over Iran, the Philippines fired blanks in the final salvo as it dropped to 1-1 in the pocket tournament that serves as part of its buildup for the FIBA World Cup later this month.

Back-to-back AJ Edu buckets to start the fourth period gave the Filipinos a 57-56 edge, but the Senegalese unloaded a 14-4 bomb engineered by Brancou Badio to turn the tides.

A shifty guard who played for the Phoenix Suns in the NBA Summer League last year, Badio capped the run with a pull-up three-pointer that practically sealed the deal for Senegal.

June Mar Fajardo led the Philippines with 14 points, while Dwight Ramos and CJ Perez finished with 11 points apiece.

Gilas Pilipinas bled for its offense in the fourth quarter, scoring just 9 points in the period.

Now the only unbeaten squad in the three-team tiff, Senegal – which failed to advance to the World Cup but is gearing up for Olympic qualification – improved to 2-0.

Enjoying a one-day break, the Philippines looks to regroup as it eyes redemption against Senegal in their rematch on Sunday, August 6.

Quarters: 22-19, 35-34, 56-53, 72-64.

– Rappler.com