Philippines back in Fiba Asia semis after 24 years

MANILA, Philippines – For the first time in two and half decades, the Philippines marched to the semifinals of Fiba Asia.

Smart Gilas Pilipinas dismantled Chinese Taipei, 95-78, in a total team effort spearheaded by Marcus Douthit Friday in the continent’s Olympic qualifiers.

The Nationals, two wins away from an outright berth in the 2012 London Olympics, will face Jordan in the semi-finals Saturday.

The naturalized center Douthit was nothing but unsinkable as he banged in 37 points while Ranidel De Ocampo added 18 points as he sparked the sensational third quarter assault for the Philippines.

Douthit and De Ocampo took turns in the demolition job which first gave the Nationals a steady 61-48 advantage midway through the third quarter, which billowed to as big as 19 points with seven minutes in the payoff period.

Douthit connected on a setup job inside by Jimmy Alapag for a 76-57 advantage before the Taiwanese summoned a last ditch effort to slash the lead to a precarious 85-78 with 2:21 to play.

But Smart Gilas quickly quelled the uprising with a 10-to-nothing spurt – on free throws by skipper Chris Tiu, a basket by De Ocampo and a rare triple by Douthit, which sealed the country’s best finish in the Fiba Asia in more than two decades.

The last time the Philippines made it this far was in the 1987 qualifiers, which was still known then as the Asian Basketball Confederation championship, in Bangkok, Thailand.