Gilas 3x3 women fall short against New Zealand in Asia Cup quarters
The Gilas Pilipinas 3x3 women’s team couldn’t sustain its good start and absorbed a 17-10 defeat at the hands of New Zealand, 17-10, to bow out of contention in the 2023 FIBA 3x3 Asia Cup quarterfinals at the Singapore Sports Hub OCBC Square on Sunday, April 2.
*Khate Castillo and the Gilas 3x3 women's team bettered their performance from last year, this time securing a quarterfinals seat after a gutsy win over Iran to end the pool play (FIBA photo)*
The Filipinas' gallant stand proved to be futile in the end as the Tall Ferns flexed their muscles in the final four minutes to put an end to Gilas' title hopes and advance to the semifinals against Thailand. Gilas actually went off to a splendid start in the game and even took an early 4-1 start behind Janine Pontejos. Shell-shocked with the speed of the Filipinas dribblers, New Zealand struggled to contain the smaller but quicker Gilas which managed to protect a 7-5 lead halfway through the contest. The titlists of the 2018 edition however would not be denied from taking the final four spot as Krystal Leger-Walker and Sharne Pupuke-Robati came alive and spearheaded a late rally for New Zealand. The Tall Ferns uncorked a telling 6-0 run to take a huge four-point lead, 11-7, in the last two minutes. Pontejos and Afril Bernardino managed to keep Gilas within striking distance and cut the lead down to two, 12-10, but a barrage of two-pointers in the waning minutes proved to be the dagger to the hearts of fighting Filipinas. Pontejos led Gilas with six points while Bernardino added three. Leger-Walker and Pupuke-Robati, on the other hand, showed the way for New Zealand with seven and six points, respectively. Despite the loss, the quarterfinals appearance was still a huge improvement for the Filipinas as compared to last year’s edition where they even failed to earn a spot to the main draw. After dropping their opener against China, 19-10, the Filipinas bounced back huge and took a gutsy 16-14 victory over Iran on Saturday, April 1, to advance to the quarterfinals.
*Khate Castillo and the Gilas 3x3 women's team bettered their performance from last year, this time securing a quarterfinals seat after a gutsy win over Iran to end the pool play (FIBA photo)*
The Filipinas' gallant stand proved to be futile in the end as the Tall Ferns flexed their muscles in the final four minutes to put an end to Gilas' title hopes and advance to the semifinals against Thailand. Gilas actually went off to a splendid start in the game and even took an early 4-1 start behind Janine Pontejos. Shell-shocked with the speed of the Filipinas dribblers, New Zealand struggled to contain the smaller but quicker Gilas which managed to protect a 7-5 lead halfway through the contest. The titlists of the 2018 edition however would not be denied from taking the final four spot as Krystal Leger-Walker and Sharne Pupuke-Robati came alive and spearheaded a late rally for New Zealand. The Tall Ferns uncorked a telling 6-0 run to take a huge four-point lead, 11-7, in the last two minutes. Pontejos and Afril Bernardino managed to keep Gilas within striking distance and cut the lead down to two, 12-10, but a barrage of two-pointers in the waning minutes proved to be the dagger to the hearts of fighting Filipinas. Pontejos led Gilas with six points while Bernardino added three. Leger-Walker and Pupuke-Robati, on the other hand, showed the way for New Zealand with seven and six points, respectively. Despite the loss, the quarterfinals appearance was still a huge improvement for the Filipinas as compared to last year’s edition where they even failed to earn a spot to the main draw. After dropping their opener against China, 19-10, the Filipinas bounced back huge and took a gutsy 16-14 victory over Iran on Saturday, April 1, to advance to the quarterfinals.