At A Glance
- The Gilas Boys fell behind early and never recovered from there to bow to a far superior New Zealand team, 85-54, in the FIBA U16 Asia Cup at the Buyant Ukhaa Sport Complex in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia on Tuesday, Sept. 2.
The Gilas Boys fell behind early and never recovered from there to bow to a far superior New Zealand team, 85-54, in the FIBA U16 Asia Cup at the Buyant Ukhaa Sport Complex in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia on Tuesday, Sept. 2.
The lethargic start spelled doom for the Filipinos as the young Tall Blacks quickly built a huge lead and safely cruised to the big win that capped their sweep of the group stage with a perfect 3-0 record.
Gilas just couldn't get anything going offensively as the taller and quicker New Zealand just imposed its will against the Filipinos defensively, limiting them to a measly 26-percent clip from the field.
The three-point shooting struggles also continued for the Nationals, shooting a 6-of-33 clip in the contest that saw them trail by as many as 31 points.
Jhustin Hallare had 13 points while Mark Jhello Lumagub had 11 points and seven rebounds for Gilas which ended the group stage at the third spot with a 1-2 record.
They will face the second seed of Group A Bahrain which defeated Lebanon and India to secure the spot in the qualification for the quarterfinals.
Liam Anthony Keogh proved to be the biggest thorn to the side of Filipinos with his 17 points and seven assists while Lawson Pryor had 15 points and six rebounds.
Three other New Zealand players finished in double figures.