Gilas Pilipinas showed a glimpse of what it has achieved as far as its readiness for the Olympic Qualifying tournament is concerned after beating Taiwan Mustangs, 74-64, during their send off friendly game at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City on Monday, June 24.
Obviously still finding ways to navigate through life without starting point guard Scottie Thompson, the Nationals bucked a sloppy first two quarters before riding on a huge third quarter run to put the game away.
Up only by three, 41-38 midway through the third quarter, Gilas turned to its swarming defense to fuel a fiery 17-3 rally to establish a double-digit advantage they never relinquished until the final horn.
Dwight Ramos took the spot of Thompson in Tim Cone’s tall starting five that featured a frontline of June Mar Fajardo and Kai Sotto, and Justin Brownlee and Calvin Oftana at the wings.
The 6-foot-4 combo guard looked comfortable in filling in the point guard spot, leading the way for Gilas with 19 points built on a near-perfect 4-of-5 clip from deep.
Brownlee also had his share of the playmaking chores for the Nationals after finishing with 12 points and 15 assists.
Sotto had nine points and nine rebounds while Fajardo added eight points, four rebounds and four steals as they took turns on defending the Mustangs’ 7-foot-6 behemoth Sam Deguara inside the paint.
The Nationals clogged inside the paint and didn’t let Deguara create the space he needed to operate, forcing the Mustangs to turnovers that fueled the third quarter run.
A Fajardo one-hander and Ramos triggered the massive run before the latter and Brownlee combined for the next seven points to answer a free throw from Deguara on the other end.
Trevis Robinson ended the drought for Taiwan with a jumper but Fajardo and Ramos again scored back-to–back layups to erect the 17 point lead, 58-41.
That stretch in the third frame somehow gave Gilas a glimpse of what it can do when it is at its best – a far cry to their shaky performance, particularly in the second frame when the Nationals could only muster 12 points.
Oscar Lopez led the way for the Mustangs with 12 points and 10 rebounds while former PBA players Alex Cabagnot and Rashawn McCarthy had 13 and 12.
The scores:
GILAS PILIPINAS 74 – Ramos 19, Brownlee 12, Sotto 9, Fajardo 8, Tamayo 7, Aguilar 6, Perez 3, Oftana 3, Amos 3, Newsome 2, Quiambao 2.
TAIWAN MUSTANGS 64 – Lopez 15, Cabagnot 13, McCarthy 12, Deguara 10, Robinson 5, Miller 4, Borja 3, Yan 2, Chiu 0, Chung 0.
