By REYNALD MAGALLON
Another valiant effort from Gilas Pilipinas went down the drain after absorbing an 89-85 loss to a higher-ranked Finland to end up winless in the pocket tournament at the Kalevi Sports Hall in Tallinn, Estonia in the wee hours of Thursday, June 29.
Just like in their first game, the Filipinos starter tentatively, allowing their rivals to dictate the tempo of the game and fall behind early before coming up short with their comeback attempt in the ensuing quarters.
Still, it was an encouraging sign for the Nationals who despite the still short time together managed to hold its own against the ranked No.24 team in the world.
Dwight Ramos continued to prove his worth with the national team after topping the scoring once more with 15 points while Justin Brownlee added 11.
Scottie Thompson, after missing the first tuneup game due to back spasms, announced his entry to the lineup with 10 points and four assists while June Mar Fajardo was the other double-digit scorer with 10 markers and four boards.
A slow start actually spelled doom for Gilas as it trailed by as many as 18 points early in the contest.
The resolve and resiliency, however, showed up again for the Nationals as Ramos, Rhenz Abando and CJ Perez pumped some life to Gilas which tied the game 31-all.
Gilas never got the taste of the lead but hung tough and actually won the last three quarters to close the gap.
Finland, though, showed poise and created the separation with a 15-6 run in the final frame to reestablish a 13-point lead, 83-70, with 4:18 to go.
Gilas, refusing to go down without a fight, still threatened and closed the gap to single digits but the run eventually proved futile in the end as Thompson’s back-to-back triples in the final 30 seconds came a little too late to salvage a win.
The Nationals will now continue with its European trip as they head for Lithuania in the coming days for a couple more tune-up games in preparation for the 2023 FIBA World Cup.
