Gilas Pilipinas escapes Jordan to finish 7th in FIBA Asia Cup

The Philippines placed seventh in the 2017 FIBA Asia Cup after defeating Jordan, 75-70, on Sunday.

Japeth Aguilar made the go-ahead layup off a feed by Terrence Romeo with 12.6 seconds left in the game to give Gilas Pilipinas the win.

Jordan committed a turnover in the ensuing possession, and Matthew Wright buried two free throws to push the lead to three. Gilas stole the ball anew in the next possession, allowing Roger Pogoy to put the icing on the cake with a layup.

The national squad rebounded from two straight, against South Korea in the quarterfinals and Lebanon in the classification round, defeats to eke out the win.

But Gilas had to get through some tense moments, as Jordan, after trailing for most of the game, unleashed an 11-0 run to take a 70-65 lead with less than two minutes remaining.

June Mar Fajardo broke the Gilas silence with a free throw, followed by a clutch three-pointer by Romeo that set up the Philippines' final kick.

Romeo, the leading scorer for Gilas in the tournament, once again paced the team with 13 points. Matthew Wright also found his scoring touch to finish with 13 as well. --JST, GMA News