Phl whips Thailand, gains 2nd win

MANILA, Philippines — Chooks To Go-Pilipinas rebounded from its seven-point loss to Sarreyyet Ramallah of Palestine the previous night, starting and finishing strong as it drubbed Mono Vampire of Thailand, 115-102, on the third day of the 2017 FIBA Asia Champions Cup at the Chenzhou Sports Center in Chenzhou, China yesterday.

Isaiah Austin shook off a slight ankle sprain suffered Saturday, powering his way to 27 points, 19 rebounds and four blocks as Team Phl nailed a second win in three outings in Group A play.

Carl Bryan Cruz, Kiefer Ravena and Jeron Teng dished out big games of their own as Chooks To Go virtually claimed a spot in the knockout stage of this Asian inter-club event.

Cruz struck with eight three-pointers and a total of 28 points, Ravena sizzled with 24 markers, seven assists, two rebounds and two steals while Teng frolicked with 17 points, five rebounds and three assists for Team Phl which won over BC Kazakhstan, 73-65, on opening day.

The Filipinos take a break today before going for a 3-1 closing mark in elims play versus PetroChimi of Iran at 9:45 p.m. tomorrow.

The Philippines made it three in a row over Thailand this year as the Filipinos clobbered the Thais in their SEABA Championship matchup in Manila, then repeated with a conquest in their showdown in the SEA Games in Singapore a few weeks back.

The Thais put up a tough stand in the middle quarters largely behind the effort of veteran PBA import Mike Singletary and Fil-Am guard Jason Brickman.

Singletary flirted with a triple-double job with 32 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists while Brickman had his solid all-around performance with 17 markers, nine assists, seven rebounds and four steals.

The Filipinos, however, won’t be denied as they got off to a strong start and finished with a flurry.