Gilas Pilipinas stumbles vs Chinese Taipei in 2025 FIBA Asia Cup opener

Gilas Pilipinas got off to a rough start at the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup, falling short in its comeback quest against Chinese Taipei, 95-87, in their early Wednesday matchup at King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

The Filipinos struggled to find their rhythm early but mounted a spirited second-quarter rally behind Justin Brownlee, with Scottie Thompson and Kevin Quiambao coming alive in the second half to fuel a desperate comeback.

Gilas, however, failed to complete the come-from-behind attempt, dropping to 0-1 in Group D play. Chinese Taipei, which shocked the Filipinos in the third window of the Asia Cup qualifiers last February, picked up right where it left off to open its campaign with a strong 1-0 start.

"Obviously, we didn't play a very good one. [I'm] disappointed in the way we played. We got behind early in the game and just played on our heels the whole game," Gilas head coach Tim Cone said.

"It was like we're in panic mode for 40 minutes."

Brownlee led the offense with 19 points laced with seven rebounds and two assists, but the naturalized forward was fouled out with 4:03 left in the fourth period which dealt a huge blow to Gilas.

Before exiting the game, the resident import was the lone bright spot for the Philippines in the first quarter, capping the said frame with a deep three that trimmed Gilas' deficit to 13, 16-27. He then connived with Thompson as they closed out the second frame staring at a nine-point deficit after trailing by as much as 17, 43-34.

Chinese Taipei big man Brandon Gilbeck punished Gilas early in the third, completing two consecutive three-point plays before the red-hot Ying-Chun Chen fired another triple to send Chinese Taipei to a 56-41 cushion. 

Quiambao and Dwight Ramos gave Gilas some signs of hope with the former converting a basket off the latter's pass, 49-59, before Thompson delivered a three-point play of his own to help Gilas cut the gap to 11 ahead of the fourth, 62-73. 

Quiambao then took charge for Gilas in the fourth quarter as Brownlee grappled with foul trouble.

The former UAAP MVP fired a corner triple then sank a layup to open the payoff period with a 5-0 personal run. He then knocked down a step back three-pointer to slice the deficit to just six in the final 4:43, 74-80. 

Gilas, however, just simply had no answer to Chen, whose triple and a pair of free throws sent Chinese Taipei to an 85-74 lead. Gilbeck provided the finishing kick with back-to-back baskets before sealing it with a slam. 

Quiambao had a decent 17-point and four-rebound outing despite playing for just 16 minutes and 35 seconds while Ramos and Thompson each finished with 16 markers with the latter grabbing seven boards, five assists, and a steal. 

June Mar Fajardo and Calvin Oftana, both of whom sat out their tune-up game against the Macau Black Bears, were limited to two and six points, respectively. 

Chen torched Gilas Pilipinas with a game-high 34 points while Gilbeck flirted with a double-double of 16 markers and nine rebounds as Chinese Taipei repeated over Gilas. 

Gilas is now facing a taller order as the Filipinos go up against New Zealand on Thursday night in bid to barge into the win column of the regional tournament. 

READ MORE | Gilas Pilipinas schedule at the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup

Scores:

Chinese Taipei 95 - Y. Chen 34, Gilbeck 16, R. Hinton 14, Lin 14, Gadiaga 5, A. Hinton 4, Tseng 4, Ma 3, Hu 1, Liu 0, Gao 0, K. Chen 0.

Philippines 87 - Brownlee 19, Quiambao 17, Thompson 16, Ramos 16, Edu 8, Oftana 6, Newsome 3, Tamayo 0, Perez 0, Aguilar 0, Malonzo 0.

—JKC, GMA Integrated News