Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Tiebreaker Times

Basketball

Gilas falls to Egypt to open King’s Cup campaign


Gilas Pilipinas bowed to Egypt, 73-58, in its 10th King Abdullah Cup opener, Monday night at the Prince Hamzah Sport Hall in Amman, Jordan.

Naturalized center Ange Kouame led the Filipino dribblers with 13 points and 11 rebounds. Isaac Go had 13 markers as well off the bench.

It was the 6-foot-8 Go who helped sparked the youth-laden crew’s late-game fightback, scoring seven in an 8-2 spurt that sliced a 12-point deficit to just half, 58-64, with less than three minutes remaining.

That, unfortunately, would be the closest that Gilas could get. The Egyptians responded with eight consecutive points, with Ali Ahmad’s triple serving as the exclamation point for a 72-58 lead with 41 ticks left to play.

Amro Mohammad Abd Alhalem led the perennial Afrobasket contenders with 14 points. Omar Saeed Arabei supported him with points.

Gilas actually ruled the boards, 50-43, but it only shot a measly 14-percent from beyond the arc by making just four of its 27 attempts. It also committed 15 turnovers, which the opposition converted to 22 points.

This was Gilas’ first game back since the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament-Belgrade, albeit with the addition of comebacking pool members.

Dwight Ramos has returned to action after sitting out the OQT due to a groin injury, He made nine points, five rebounds, four assists, and a block.

Thirdy Ravena is back with the national team as well. The Japan B.League import finished with eight markers and eight boards.

Others who have also rejoined the squad are Dave Ildefonso, Matt Nieto, and Rey Suerte, all of which have recovered from their respective injuries.

#ReadMore  Baldwin does not see Gilas' close loss to Serbia as a moral victory

Gilas has a chance to atone for its opening night loss versus Saudi Arabia on Wednesday, July 27, at 6:00 p.m. (Manila time).

The Scores:

Gilas Pilipinas (60) — Kouame 13, Go 13, Ramos 9, Ravena 8, Belangel 6, Baltazar 4, Heading 3, Ildefonso 3, Navarro 1, Ma. Nieto 0, Chiu 0, Tamayo 0, Abarrientos 0.

Egypt (73) — Alhalem 14, Arabei 11, Kamal 9, Hussin 6, Saleh 6, Shehata 6, Khlaf 6, Shosha 6, Ahmad 3, Elmekawy 2, Bakhet 2, Abdellatif 1, Abdelgawad 1.

Quarterscores: 12-13, 24-33, 43-55, 60-73.

Written By

Oftentimes on the sidelines. Forever a student of the game. Morayta-bred.


You May Also Like

Basketball

Juami Tiongson nailed the game-winner to help Terrafirma complete a massive comeback against Blackwater, 92-91, and get back on track in the PBA Season...

ADMU

Ever since committing to Ateneo de Manila University early this year, Jared Bahay has already trained with the Blue Eagles for a couple of...

Basketball

LAPU-LAPU CITY – Australia head coach Brian Goorjian believes that Gilas Pilipinas is about to go on a ‘surge’ with Tim Cone now manning...

Basketball

TNT cut short Terrafirma’s unbeaten streak, 100-97, for its second win of the PBA Season 48 Philippine Cup, Saturday at the SMART Araneta Coliseum....

Basketball

Terrafirma arrested a hijack attempt by Converge, 107-99, for a winning PBA Season 48 Philippine Cup debut, Friday at the SMART Araneta Coliseum. Stephen...

Basketball

At the tender age of 21, Kai Sotto has already experienced what most Filipino basketball players could only dream of. After leaving Ateneo High...

Basketball

The PBA has decided to scrap the Slam Dunk Contest in its 2024 All-Star festivities in Bacolod as the supposed participants are out due...

Basketball

Gilas Pilipinas head coach Tim Cone is absolutely certain that Kai Sotto will dominate Asia in the years to come after witnessing the latter’s...

Advertisement