Philippines beats Thailand in 3 x 3 women’s basketball

Melissa Jacob, Allana May Lim, Analyn Almazan, and Merenciana Arayi of the Discovery Perlas ng Pilipinas basketball team. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines–The Discovery Perlas ng Pilipinas team beat Thailand on Monday at the ongoing 3×3 Women’s Basketball at the 3rd Asian Beach Games in Haiyang, China.

The team, composed of Analyn Almazan, Merenciana Arayi, Melissa Jacob, and Allana May Lim, posted their first win after losing to India on Sunday.

The Philippine team is competing against Group A countries which includes Thailand, India, and Nepal.

The team’s head coach is Haydee Ong and the assistant coach is Gina Francisco.
The 3×3 basketball’s format is a little different from regular basketball.  There are three players per team playing in a 10-minute game. The game is a lot more fast-paced and the balance is shifted a little towards skill against athleticism, since the open court transition game is taken away and athletic teams can no longer just rely on their superior physique to get easy baskets end to end.

The 3rd Asian Beach Games was officially declared open in Haiyang, China on June 16, as the coastal city welcomed more than 1,600 athletes from around Asia.

This is the biggest sporting event since the 2008 Beijing Olympics.  The week-long tournament will see a total of 49 gold medals up for grabs in 13 sports.

The competition features all the 45 member countries and regions under the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), with the Games one of the five major multi-sport events under the OCA.

This year marks the first time China is hosting the biennial beach sport gala, with Bali, Indonesia, hosting the inaugural edition in 2008. Oman will be the host country in 2014.