MANILA – Gilas Pilipinas were smothered from start to finish by New Zealand to suffer a harrowing 106-60 defeat in the third window of the 2023 FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers on Thursday at the EventFinda Stadium in Aukland, New Zealand.
It was New Zealand’s second victory over the Philippine men’s basketball team after scoring an 88-63 triumph on Feb. 27 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
With the lopsided triumph, New Zealand remains on top of Group A standings with a perfect 3-0 win-loss slate, while the Philippines slumped to 1-2 record.
Gilas Pilipinas were down 9-11 on conversions from Dwight Ramos and William Navarro but New Zealand went on a huge run to build a 23-10 lead before the Philippines knocked down three free throws for a 13-23 deficit.
The Philippines came closest at 15-23 on two free throws by Carl Tamayo but New Zealand unloaded 10 unanswered points to pull away at 47-21 at the half.
Rhenz Abando waxed hot early in the third quarter as the Gilas Pilipinas came to within 32-57 but New Zealand countered with outside conversions for a 73-43 advantage.
New Zealand continued to annihilate Gilas Pilipinas in the fourth quarter with three-point hits and three-point plays to widen the lead further at 102-55 with over three minutes left.
Dion Prewster spearheaded the offense for New Zealand with 15 points, including three outside connections, while Finn Delany followed up with 14 markers.
Jordan Ngatai and Ethan Rusbatch chipped in 12 markers apiece, while Corey Webster and Shea Ili also hit double figures on offense with 11 and 10 points, respectively, for the Kiwis.
Tamayo ended the match with 16 points before exiting in the fourth quarter with an ankle injury, while Abando contributed 11 markers for Gilas Pilipinas.
BOX SCORE:
NEW ZEALAND 106 — Prewster 15, Delany 14, Ngatai 12, Rusbatch 12, Webster 11, Ili 10, Vodanovich 8, Britt 7, Cameron 6, Milner 5, Timmins 4, Harris 2.
PHILIPPINES 60 — Tamayo 16, Abando 11, Lopez 8, Ramos 6, Ravena 6, Quiambao 4, Belangel 3, Navarro 2, Chiu 2, Abarrientos 2, Ildefonso 0.
Quarterscores: 23-13, 47-21, 73-43, 106-60./PN
