Gabe’s posterizer off Scola decade’s best dunk?

MANILA, Philippines — Gabe Norwood’s electrifying dunk over Argentina’s Luis Scola during the 2014 FIBA World Cup remains a big hit among basketball fans.

In fact, it’s a strong candidate for FIBA’s Dunk of the Decade award.

With 81.85 percent based on the fans’ online voting, the Filipino-American forward for Gilas Pilipinas is enjoying the inside track in the Asia-Oceania bracket.

Australia’s Mitch Creek is a far second with 18.15 percent in the race that includes highlight dunks by Giannis Antetokounmpo of Greece, Luca Doncic of Slovenia, Japan’s Rui Hachimura, Spain’s Rudy Fernandez, Canada’s Kelly Olynyk, China’s Yi Jianlian, Rudy Gobert of France, and Jaylen Brown and James Harden of the United States.

With the Philippines’ massive fan following on social media, Norwood is tipped to hold on until the voting ends this week.

First-round voting, which also features brackets in the Americas, Europe and Africa, ends this weekend. Winners of each zone via three-week voting will advance to the semifinals for the bragging rights as the greatest FIBA dunker this decade.

Norwood’s towering, one-handed dunk over Scola came off a fastbreak and a perfect feed by Gilas teammate Jason Castro, giving the Philippines a 19-12 lead.

But Scola, who played for Houston, Phoenix, Indiana, Toronto and Brooklyn in a 10-year NBA career that ended in 2017, went on to score 19 points and helped Argentina win the game, 85-81.

Norwood wants the last laugh.