Mission accomplished for Gilas Women’s.
The Philippines struck gold in the 30th Southeast Asian Games 3×3 women’s basketball competition at the expense of its elimination round tormentor Thailand, 17-13, Monday afternoon at the FilOil Flying V Centre in San Juan City.
With payback in mind following a heartbreaking defeat to the Thais at the tail-end of the preliminaries, the Filipinas relied on the completeness of their roster, brewing a good blend of size and quickness to blow past the opposition.
And at the eye of the Philippines’ storm was Afril Bernardino, who was a woman on a mission.
Locked in a 5-all lock, Bernardino went supernova, scoring seven times in a blistering 11-0 explosion that put Gilas way ahead, 16-6.
And when the Thais churned out a fightback with five unanswered points that trimmed the deficit down to five at 11-16, Bernardino restored order and struck the dagger en route to a game-high 10 points.
“Sobrang saya and thankful din kami, kasi di kami pinabayaan ni God at lahat ng mga sumusuporta samin. Nakuha na namin yung goal namin this 3×3. Thankful kami sa crowd, para i-boost yung energy namin,” Bernardino said.
Meanwhile, Malaysia barely felt any resistance in the bronze medal match, as it salvaged bronze at the expense of Vietnam, 21-7.
