History repeated itself on Gilas U18 Women’s team and it was a painful one.
Just like in the U16 tiff a few months back, the Filipina dribblers' promising start ended with another heartbreaking semifinals exit, this time falling short against Southeast Asian rival Malaysia in overtime, 66-65, in the FIBA Women’s U18 Asian Championship at the Koramangala Indoor Stadium at Bangalore, India on Saturday, Sept. 10.
The Gilas Girls battled back from 12-points down, but just couldn’t convert the key baskets down the stretch as their hopes for a Division A promotion was dashed by Sammi Tan who scored on a floater with 10 seconds left to shove Malaysia ahead for good.
She had the chance to extend the lead to two but missed the free throws before Kate Bobadilla grabbed the rebound and went for a layup on the other end which proved to be a little bit too strong for the ball to hit the bottom of the net.
Bobadilla paced the Philippines with 19 points and nine rebounds, including the layup that gave Gilas a 65-64 lead with 40 seconds left in the extra period. She also had the chance to pad the lead to two but she missed the bonus free throw.
Liane Loon provided support with a double-double of 17 points and 10 rebounds but it was not enough as the Filipinas’ group stage sweep went down the drain once again just like in the U16 tournament.
Jia Huey Yun and Xiao Qi Teh emerged as the one-two punch for Malaysia with 14 and 13 points respectively as they set up a title duel with Mongolia in the Finals. Gilas, meanwhile, takes on Samoa in the battle for third on Sunday, Sept. 11.