Gilas bucks slow start, thwarts Japan

MANILA, Philippines – Gilas Pilipinas overcame a lethargic opening quarter then fended off repeated comeback tries by a determined Japanese side to defend its home turf with a 89-84 victory in the second window of the FIBA World Cup Asian qualifiers at the Mall of Asia Arena Sunday.

The Japanese threatened in the endgame when they trimmed Gilas’ lead to just two, 86-84, but Jayson Castro spoiled their effort with a dagger basket to seal the win for the Filipinos.

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Castro, who was reinserted to the lineup a day before action, uncorked the gut punch — a floater off the board to give Gilas an 88-84 lead at the final 10.9 seconds of the game.

Japan then failed to convert in the ensuing possession off a timeout and was forced to foul Andray Blatche, who split his charities to arrive at the final score.

Gilas started the game flat, trailing heavily to the aggressive Japanese, 4-20.

But the Filipinos eventually found their rhythm and unleashed a 17-2 barrage to end the first quarter down by just one, 21-22. Rookie Kiefer Ravena and another returnee in  Troy Rosario figured in that blistering fightback for the Nationals.

From there, Gilas started to mount double-digit leads, but Japan proved to be a tough nut to crack with a rally late in the pay-off period.

"We kind of expected that we would struggle coming off that trip. It was a very difficult trip for us coming from Melbourne via Sydney. We kind of expected that we would struggle in this ballgame," head coach Chot Reyes said.

"That’s why even when Japan got that early lead, we didn’t panic. We knew that we would have a hard time. We also knew that Japan was basically fighting for its life so we knew that they would jump on us and come out strong. That’s why we made sure that the second unit was prepared because in my mind, it’s the second unit that was going to get us back into the ballgame," he closed.

The win gives Gilas a 3-1 record in their group, their lone defeat coming at the hands of the taller Australians last Thursday.

Philippines virtually punched their ticket in the second round after sending Japan to their fourth straight loss in as many outings.

The third window of the qualifying tournament for the 2019 meet will be on June. Gilas takes on Chinese Taipei on the road on the 29th and then reopen old wounds with Australia on July 2 in at the massive Philippine Arena in Bulacan. – With added reporting by Denison Rey A. Dalupang

The Scores:

PHILIPPINES 89 — Blatche 18,Rosario 14, Ravena 13, Abueva 8, Castro William 8, Norwood 8, Fajardo 7, Pogoy 6, Aguilar 5, Jalalon 2, Wright 0.

JAPAN 84 — Hiejima 23, Brown 16, Tanaka 12, Shinoyama 9, Tsuji 8, Ota 6, Takeuchi 5, Uto 3, Harimoto 2, Furukawa 0, Hashimoto 0, Nagayoshi 0.

Quarters: 21-22, 46-41, 72-61, 89-84.