Gilas gives Argentina best shot

MANILA, Philippines — Undermanned Gilas Pilipinas youth squad gave everything it had before crumbling down the wire anew in a 77-72 loss to powerhouse Argentina in the second day of the FIBA U19 World Cup Monday morning at the Heraklion Arena in Greece.

Sans big man AJ Edu who suffered an ACL and meniscus tear on his right knee in the opener against Greece, Gilas never seized control but still remained within striking distance heading into the fourth period with a manageable 58-51 deficit.

That was when things turned sour for the Philippine squad despite the consistent effort of Kai Sotto together with aces Gerry Abadiano and Dave Ildefonso as Argentina gunner Lucas Reyes spearheaded a quick 10-2 rally to make it 68-53 midway through the fourth.

Flashing its never-say-die spirit, Gilas youth unleashed one last hurrah, a 16-5 retaliation highlighted by Abadiano’s booming triple in the last 33 seconds to zero in, 69-73.

That proved to be the 30th-ranked Nationals’ last shout as Reyes once again shut the door down on them with four straight free throws.

Reyes finished with 15 points on an efficient 9-of-11 shooting to go along five assists to lead the way for the Argentines, who also edged out Russia in the opener for a perfect 2-0 card in Pool C.

Marco Giordano and Francisco Farabello also chipped in 18 and 15 markers, respectively, for the world No. 9 Argentina, which previously eclipsed world No. 19 Russia, 86-84.

For the Gilas youth side which shot a meager 25.9 percent from three, the 7-foot-2 Sotto stood tall with 17 points, eight rebounds and six blocks while Ildefonso had 22 markers, 10 boards and three steals.

Abadiano added nine points, five rebounds and two assists in a losing cause for the Filipinos who slid to fourth place in Pool C with a 0-2 mark.

Gilas youth takes a breather today before plunging back to action against Russia at 1:30 a.m. tomorrow (Manila time) in hope of finally barging into the win column.

Russia (1-1) along with Greece (1-1) are currently tied at second place of Pool C after the former outlasted the latter with an 83-75 win also yesterday.

The scores:

Argentina 77 – Giordano 18, Farabello 15, Reyes 15, Caffaro 9, Ruesga 8, Marcos 5, Chapero 4, Fuente 3, Lugarini 0, Fernandez 0, Simondi 0.

Philippines 72 – Ildefonso 22, Sotto 17, Abadiano 9, Spencer 9, Tamayo 8, Amsali 4, Panopio 3, Torres 0, Chiu 0, Oczon 0, Fortea 0.

Quarterscores: 22-15; 39-32; 58-51; 77-72.