Justin Brownlee and CJ Perez conspired to bring Gilas Pilipinas past Thailand, 87-72, to remain perfect in the 19th Asian Games men’s basketball competitions, Thursday at the Zhejiang University Zijingang Gymnasium in China.
Brownlee finished with 22 points, 15 rebounds, and five assists, while Perez delivered 16 off the bench as the duo saved their side from a humiliating collapse after seeing a 21-point lead become just five in the final period.
Brownlee hit a three-pointer as a quick response to Freddie Lish’s own make on the other end, and then dished it out to a streaking Perez for a tough lay-up to stretch their lead to 10, 75-65, with only 4:50 remaining in the game.
Lish still tried to will the Thais back in the game but Chris Newsome converted a tough lay-up off a June Mar Fajardo dime, and Brownlee, shortly after, coolly canned a pair of free throws to push their lead further, 79-68, with 3:26 left.
Japeth Aguilar, Scottie Thompson, and Arvin Tolentino then helped close it out as the Philippines coasted to the 15-point win en route to gaining a share of the Pool C leadership with Jordan. Both teams tote identical 2-0 records.
Gilas and the Falcons will dispute the group’s no. 1 seed — and a direct flight to the quarterfinals — on Saturday, September 30, at 5:30 p.m.
On the other hand, Tyler Lamb led Thailand with a game-high 29 points in the loss, their second in as many outings. Lish backed him up with 22.
Lamb already had 21 points in the first half, including 14 on three triples in the opening period alone as he led the Thais to a hot 22-12 start against a Philippine team that could not find the mark offensively.
But it didn’t take long for the Filipino dribblers to get into rhythm. Perez was brought in and provided instant impact as he sparked a 15-0 run abridging the first and second quarters to give themselves a 27-22 lead.
It wasn’t until the third quarter, though, that Gilas made life more difficult for Thailand as they pushed their lead to 68-47 in the tailend of the said period.
The Thais did wake up when they opened the fourth with 13 straight points to get within five twice, but they gradually lost steam and, eventually, absorbed another double-digit defeat after bowing to the Jordanians, 97-63.
Now, Thailand will look to break through against the 0-2 Bahrain also on Saturday, hoping to catch the bus to the Qualification for Quarterfinals.
The Scores:
Philippines (87) – Brownlee 22, Perez 16, Fajardo 9, Oftana 8, Thompson 7, Aguilar 6, Newsome 5, Kouame 5, Alas 3, Lassiter 3, Tolentino 3, Ross 0.
Thailand (72) – Lamb 29, Lish 22, Muangboon 6, Morgan 5, Jakrawan 4, Klahan 4, Klaewnarong 2, Boonserm 0, Jaisanuk 0, Towaroj 0.
Quarterscores: 20-22, 41-35, 68-50, 87-72.
