Gilas Pilipinas are out of the 20th Asian Games after suffering a crushing 105-61 defeat to China on Monday at the Aichi International Center in the final game of the elimination phase.
The Chinese, unbeaten in the group stage, wasted no time asserting dominance. They drilled four early three-pointers and imposed their size and skill to build a commanding 36-16 cushion after the first quarter. The second period was even more brutal, as China doubled up the Filipinos, 30-14, to take a 66-30 lead into halftime.
China Closes Doors on Gilas Pilipinas
The Philippines managed to slow China’s offense somewhat after halftime, holding them to just 13 points in the third quarter. But Gilas’ own attack sputtered, producing only 10 points, leaving the deficit untouched.
Even with the game well out of reach, Gilas Pilipinas still had an outside chance of advancing if they could keep the margin below 38 points. A brief spark from Sedrick Barefield cut the lead to 81-46 with 8:07 left, raising faint hopes. China, however, responded immediately, pushing the gap back to 40 and extinguishing any chance of survival.
Dominant Chinese Performance
Junjie Wang punished Gilas inside, finishing with 20 points and 14 rebounds. Six other Chinese players scored in double figures, including Sanning Liao with 14, Mingxuan Hu with 13, Boqiao Jiao and Yuezhou Li with 11 apiece, and Yongxi Cui and Jiayi Zhao with 10 each.
Calvin Oftana led the Philippines with 13 points, while Barefield added 9. No other Filipino managed more than 7.
The loss sent the Philippines to its worst ever Asian Games basketball finish at ninth place.
