Gilas Pilipinas escapes Jordan, salvages 7th place

Photo from Fiba.com

Gilas Pilipinas gained a measure of consolation as it escaped Jordan, 75-70, to wrap up its campaign in the 2017 Fiba Asia Cup in seventh place Sunday night at Nouhad Nawfal Sports Complex in Beirut, Lebanon.

Terrence Romeo willed his team back from a 70-65 deficit in the final 1:47, drilling a three from the top of the key before his drive to the basket led to the go-ahead bucket by Japeth Aguilar, 71-70, with 12.6 seconds left.

READ: Gilas gets blown out by Lebanon, drops to battle for 7th

Romeo continued his brilliance on the other end, forcing a backcourt violation on Mahmoud Abdeen before Matthew Wright and Roger Pogoy sealed the victory.

The flashy guard finished the game with 13 points, four rebounds, and two assists, as his endgame heroics more than made up for his dismal 3-of-12 clip from the field.

Wright also shot 3-of-8 from threes to wind up with 13 markers, seven of which coming in the third quarter, while Carl Bryan Cruz got nine points in the win.

Gilas seemed to be on its way to an easy victory before Ahmad Alhamarsheh and Mousa Alawadi led the Jordanians’ fightback.

The duo sparked Jordan’s huge 11-0 blast to help their crew recover from a six-point hole, 65-59, with 5:24 remaining and take a 70-65 advantage inside the last two minutes.

At that point, the Philippines couldn’t seem to catch a break as its star guard Jayson Castro William went down with an apparent knee injury with 1:02 left.

But Romeo had other plans, weaving his magic late to close the Philippines’ stint in the continental championship with a victory.

Alawadi topped Jordan with 21 points and three rebounds, Mohammad Hussein got a double-double of 13 markers and 15 boards, and Alhamarsheh had 12 in a losing effort.

The Scores:

GILAS PILIPINAS 75 – Romeo 13, Wright 13, Cruz 9, Aguilar 8, Castro William 8, Abueva 6, Norwood 5, Almazan 4, Jalalon 4, Fajardo 3, Pogoy 2.

JORDAN 70 – Alawadi 21, Hussein 13, Alhamarsheh 12, Abdeen 10, Abu Hawwas 8, Bzai 3, Zaghab 3, Abu Wazaneh 0, Eid 0.

Quarters: 17-17, 35-27, 58-53, 75-70.