Luis Pablo took charge in the endgame, lifting Gilas Pilipinas 3×3 to a 21-19 victory over Chinese Taipei and into the semifinals of the 20th Asian Games Men’s 3×3 Basketball Tournament on Thursday at Kinjo Futo Station Square.
With the game tied at 19-all, Pablo, the reigning UAAP 3×3 MVP, scored a putback off his own miss to put the Philippines at match point with 42.6 seconds remaining.
After a defensive stop, Pablo drove through the lane and scored over Chang Chunsheng to seal the victory.
Gilas Men will next face continental rival South Korea in the semifinals.
Behind Koji Buenaflor, the Filipinos raced to a 12-6 lead before Yeh Weichieh sparked a Chinese Taipei comeback, tying the game at 14-all.
Chinese Taipei eventually took an 18-17 lead, but Doy Dungo answered with a huge two-pointer over Yeh with 1:11 remaining. Yeh then converted a free throw to tie the game for the final time before Pablo took over.
Nic Cabanero led Gilas with eight points, while Pablo and Dungo added six and five, respectively.
Buenaflor hauled down 10 rebounds to go with his two points.
Yeh was the lone bright spot for Chinese Taipei, finishing with 10 points, including three two-pointers.
