The numbers did not fall in favor of Gilas Pilipinas Women.
The Philippines not only fell to host Chinese-Taipei Blue, 66-82, but also fell short of making it to the 43rd William Jones Cup podium on Wednesday evening at Xinzhuang Gymnasium in New Taipei City.
Gilas, Thailand, and Chinese-Taipei White ended up in a three-way tie with identical 2-3 records. However, the quotient did not favor Gilas, resulting in a minus-3 compared to Chinese-Taipei Blue’s plus-12. Thailand ended up in fifth place with a minus-9.
Japan’s Universiade team went a perfect 5-0 to rule the tournament while Taiwan’s A-team finished with a 4-1 record.
The Philippines’ hopes for a silver were quickly diminished right from the get-go, falling behind 26-10 early. Gilas could not cut through the double-digit lead as their three-point shots were not connecting, going just 2-of-17 from deep.
It did not help that Jack Animam was held down to just six attempts for eight points with nine rebounds, while Janine Pontejos and Afril Bernardino battled foul trouble the entire game.
Naomi Panganiban finished with 19 points for Gilas, while Bernardino and Stefanie Berberabe got 12 points apiece.
Lin Yuting led the way for Chinese-Taipei with 15 points, supported by Lin Tiah with 14.
The Scores:
Chinese-Taipei 82 – Lin Y 15, Lin T 14, Lin W 10, Hsu 9, Peng 9, Chen 9, Peng 6, Han 3, Cho 2, Wang 0.
Philippines 66 – Panganiban 19, Bernardino 12, Berberabe 12, Animam 8, Ozar 6, Ramos 6, Castillo 3, Pontejos 0, Bobadilla 0, Yumil 0, Pagdulagan 0, Nolasco 0.
Quarterscores: 26-10, 47-32, 62-49, 82-66.