MANILA – Gilas Pilipinas made sure to end their 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup campaign on a winning note via a 96-75 rout of China on Saturday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Jordan Clarkson led the way with 34 points, with 24 coming in the third quarter, to go with three assists, two rebounds and a steal.
The Philippine men’s basketball team capped off their campaign at 24th place with a 1-5 win-loss slate.
Rhenz Abando had his best game of the World Cup with 14 points along with five rebounds. Kai Sotto and Dwight Ramos tallied 12 and 11 points, respectively, while AJ Edu hauled 10 rebounds to go with five points for the Philippines.
Gilas Pilipinas surged to a 10-2 start behind early hits from Roger Pogoy and June Mar Fajardo but China quickly made a run to take a 16-12 lead before Clarkson drilled four straight points to tie the score at 16-all.
In the second quarter, the Philippine team was able to take the five-point lead but China, behind naturalized player Li Kai Er, mounted a huge run to take a slim 40-39 lead at the half.
China continued its run to start the third frame as they established a 44-39 lead but Gilas Pilipinas turned things around behind Abando, Clarkson and Fajardo as they knotted the score at 46-all.
A three-pointer by Abando gave Gilas Pilipinas a 51-48 advantage midway in the third frame before Clarkson took over with consecutive three-point connections as they built a 73-51 lead.
China attempted to make a run to start the fourth quarter with their tightened defense on Clarkson but big men Sotto and Edu managed to convert from inside as they padded the lead to its biggest at 25 points.
“We did not want our hosting to end without giving the Filipino people a win,” said Gilas Pilipinas head coach Vincent “Chot” Reyes. “The good games we played previously showed in this game.”
Li, known in the NBA as Kyle Anderson, tallied 17 points, nine rebounds and five assists. Zhang Zhenlin added 13 markers, while Hu Mingxuan and Zhao Rui ended with 12 points each for China./PN
BOX SCORE:
PHILIPPINES 96 – Clarkson 34, Abando 14, Sotto 12, Ramos 11, Fajardo 9, Pogoy 7, Edu 5, Thompson 4, Ravena 0, Aguilar 0.
CHINA 75 – Li 17, Zhang 13, M. Hu 12, R. Zhao 12, J. Hu 10, Zhu 5, Qi 2, Cui 2, Fu 2, J. Zhao 0.
Quarterscores: 16-16, 39-40, 73-51, 96-75.
