Gilas Pilipinas broke no sweat as they concluded their Round 1 action with a 110-64 waylaying of Kuwait in Group B of the 2015 FIBA Asia Championship Friday in Changsa, China.
Four players finished in double-digits for the Philippines, led by Terrence Romeo’s 19 points in less than 19 minutes which included a perfect 3-for-3 from three-point area.
Jayson Castro added 16 points, while seven others scored eight points or more.
Kuwait managed to put up a fight in the early goings, hitting two triples to pull within 1, 10-11 before Gilas tightened up defensively and running in transition.
Gilas outscored Kuwait 23-1 to close the opening quarter and kept pounding the West Asian side with fastbreak baskets anchored by Calvin Abueva and JC Intal.
The lead ballooned to 44-11 before the Kuwaitis finally gained semblance of rhythm as Mashari Abu Dohm drilled three straight long range connections which ended Kuwait’s drought from the field.
The Philippines held a 55-27 halftime edge, as Intal and Abueva combined for 16 first half points. Jayson Castro and Dondon Hontiveros then conspired to open the third period, scoring outside jumpers and fastbreak baskets to push the advantage to 77-32.
The Philippines towered over their foes, winning the rebounding department, 52-26 and also having a 4-2 edge in blocks.
Tab Baldwin’s aggressive troops also shot 56.2 percent from the field, including 9-for-16 from downtown and drew 22 more free throw attempts in the game.
With the win, Gilas improved to 2-1 in Group B and shall carry over a 1-1 record in the second round where the top three finishers of the group shall be merged with Group A’s Iran, India, and Japan.
Gilas will face all three nations starting on Sunday as they gun for a spot in the quarter-finals.
Scores:
Philippines (110) – Romeo 19, Castro 16, Abueva 10, Intal 10, Taulava 9, De Ocampo 9, Hontiveros 9, Blatche 8, Thoss 8, Ganuelas 6, Norwood 4, Pingris 2.
Kuwait (64) – Al Shammari 15, Al Saeid 13, Abu Dohm 12, Al Hamidi 9, Borhamah 7, Hasan 3, Marzouq 0, Al Zafiri 0, M. Al Shammari 0,
Quarters: 34-11, 55-27, 87-48, 110-64.
