PH five in must-win duel with Taiwanese
GUANGZHOU—The Smart Gilas Pilipinas five dumped winless India, 78-57, Sunday night but found itself in a must-win situation against Chinese Taipei for a quarterfinal berth in the 16th Asian Games basketball competition at the Ying Dong Gymnasium here.
With Qatar securing the third quarterfinal slot in Group F after nipping Japan, the Filipinos, now with a 2-2 record, need to hurdle the Taiwanese (1-3) in a game scheduled late Monday night to likewise advance.
A PH loss would give Chinese Taipei the fourth and last quarterfinal berth under the winner-over-the-other rule that will break the 2-3 tie.
If the Filipinos win, they get defending champion China as quarterfinal foe under the crossover pairings pitting the Group E topnotcher against Group F’s No. 4 qualifier.
The Chinese topped its group by downing South Korea, 76-66, also Sunday.
As things stand, Japan and Qatar share the lead in Group F at 3-1 along with Asian champ Iran, which nipped Chinese Taipei, 73-72.
Team captain Chris Tiu poured 11 of his 13 points in the third period as Smart Gilas sped to a 63-41 lead, from a tight 31-30 halftime edge against India.
“We’re a little bit tight because of the result of Qatar’s game against Japan,” said Smart Gilas coach Rajko Toroman.
The Qataris, beaten by the Filipinos, 90-68, Wednesday, edged the Japanese, 88-87, Sunday and faced the Iranians Monday night.
“We have to decide our own destiny,” said Toroman. “There’s no other way but to win against Chinese Taipei. We have to attack their zone and stop their three-pointers.”
If they hurdle the Taiwanese, the Filipinos could still end up facing the Koreans in the quarterfinals, provided Iran also beat Qatar.
Down to 10 men due to injuries, Toroman gave Marcio Lassiter, who is hampered by a groin injury, limited minutes against India.
JV Casio suffered a minor leg injury while Tiu also hurt his groin. But the three are expected to suit up against the Taiwanese, who lost to the Filipinos in the Jones Cup last July.
The scores:
PHILIPPINES 78—Casio 18, Tiu 13, Taulava 10, Lutz 10, Barroca 8, Williams 7, Baracel 6, Slaughter 4, Lassiter 2.
INDIA 57—J. Singh 14, Bhriguvanshi 10, Y. Singh 10, Pereira 6, Shan 6, Mishra 6, Koroth 2, Coimbatore 2, Rathee 1.
Quarters: 21-14, 31-30, 63-41, 78-57
