By REYNALD MAGALLON
It was mission accomplished for the Gilas Pilipinas girls team, finally earning a long coveted Division A promotion after demolishing Lebanon, 95-64 in the FIBA U18 Asia Cup Division B Final at the Futian Sports Park in Shenzhen, China on Sunday, June 30.
Failing to accomplish the feat two years ago, the Filipinas would not be denied this time as they rode on a huge second quarter explosion to cruise to the victory that capped Gilas dominant run that saw them sweep the entire tournament.
Gilas proved to be in a league of its own, winning all of its games prior to the finals with an average winning margin of 57 points. The Julie Amos-mentored squad swept the group stage against Lebanon and Maldives before clobbering Samoa in the semifinals
Outside a surprisingly competitive opening frame, it was pretty much the same dominant showing for the Filipinas who went on a blistering 22-2 run to turn what initially looked to be a tight game at 20-all into a massive 42-22 lead.
Behind the suffocating full court pressure defense and hot shooting from deep, Gilas exploded for 33 points while limiting Lebanon to just measly nine points in the second frame to break the game wide open.
Alyssa Rodriguez set the tone for the Filipina’s fiery shooting with 22 points built on six treys on top of her three steals whileMarga Villanueva provided support with 15 points.
Naomi Panganiban chipped in 13 points as Sophia Canindo and Ava Fajardo all had 10 apiece for a Gilas team that connected on 15 triples on a high 40 percent clip while forcing Lebanon to 31 turnovers – 21 of which were steals for the Filipinas.
Reem Elgali had a huge double-double of 31 points and 15 rebounds for Lebanon although it all went for naught as her team trailed by as many as 41 points and never really threatened after Gilas second quarter onslaught.
