Gilas Pilipinas falls to New Zealand in 2OT in FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers

The Philippines' Gilas Pilipinas came up just short in a spirited comeback, falling to home team New Zealand, 106-102, in double overtime on Friday in the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers.

The Tall Blacks built a 55-43 lead early in the third quarter before the Philippines rallied, outscoring New Zealand the rest of the period to take a 64-63 advantage heading into the fourth.

The two teams traded baskets throughout the final quarter, with New Zealand holding an 81-79 lead with 45 seconds remaining in regulation.

Kevin Quiambao split his free throws after drawing an unsportsmanlike foul from Tai Webster to trim the deficit to one, but Justin Brownlee turned the ball over on the ensuing possession.

Shea Ili was then fouled by Dwight Ramos and converted both free throws to give New Zealand an 83-80 cushion. On the next possession, however, Juan Gomez de Liaño buried a clutch three-pointer with 11 seconds left to tie the game and force overtime after Ili and Webster both missed potential game-winners.

New Zealand led 87-85 midway through the first overtime before Brownlee scored on a layup and Quiambao split his free throws following a foul by Jordan Ngatai to put Gilas back in front.

After missing his second free throw, Quiambao made up for it with a floater to extend the Philippines' lead to 90-87. Reuben Te Rangi answered with back-to-back baskets to restore the Tall Blacks' advantage before Gomez de Liaño drilled another clutch three-pointer to put Gilas ahead once more.

A late foul by Ramos then sent Ili to the free-throw line, where he knocked down both attempts to tie the game and send it to a second overtime.

New Zealand grabbed an early 96-93 lead in the second extra period, but Gilas responded with a 7-0 run capped by a Brownlee three-pointer to move ahead, 100-96.

Te Rangi and Carlin Davison then each converted two free throws after drawing fouls from Quiambao and Chris Newsome, respectively, to knot the score at 100.

Sam Mennenga and Quiambao exchanged baskets to keep the game tied at 102 before Mennenga scored inside to put New Zealand ahead for good.

Jordan Ngatai and Ili then split their free throws in the closing seconds to seal the Tall Blacks' victory.

"It would've been nice to be able to come down here and steal a game, it would've been special. The fact that we came as close as we did, obviously it's a huge disappointment," Gilas Pilipinas head coach Tim Cone said.

"We had chances in regulation and both overtimes to win that basketball game, we just came up short. Bottomline was our guys came to play," he added.

Gomez de Liaño finished with 23 points on four three-pointers, along with six rebounds, four assists, and a steal to lead the Philippines. Quiambao also scored 23 points while adding three rebounds, two assists, and a steal.

Dwight Ramos contributed 18 points, Carl Tamayo added 17, while Brownlee was limited to five points but made his presence felt with eight rebounds, four assists, and three steals.

Te Rangi led New Zealand with 22 points, while Ili chipped in 21.

With the victory, New Zealand improved to 3-2, while Gilas dropped to 2-3 in the first round of the Asian Qualifiers. The Philippines, however, had already secured a spot in the second round along with Australia.

Gilas Pilipinas will wrap up its first-round campaign against Australia on July 6.

—JKC, GMA News