Gilas Pilipinas Basketball

Gilas Pilipinas put up a gallant fight before losing a thrilling match against Serbia, 83-76 on Wednesday (Thursday Manila time) in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Belgrade.

Big man Boban Marjanovic imposed his will underneath, finishing with a double-double of 25 points on 12-of-18 shooting and 10 rebounds.

Marjanovic hit key baskets down the stretch, including a push shot with 36.6 seconds left that sealed the game for Serbia, giving them a five-point cushion, 81-76.

Ognjen Dobric and Milos Teodosic contributed 16 and 13 points, respectively. Teodosic also dished out six assists.

Gilas fended off a strong start from Serbia and managed to pull within 17-16 in the opening quarter.

Marjanovic then starred in a 10-0 run, getting easy baskets around the rim which made it 32-18 for the hosts.

But the Philippines fought back, out-scoring Serbia in the third before a triple by Carl Tamayo and a bank shot by Mike Nieto tied the count at 67-all early in the payoff period.

RJ Abarrientos gave the lead to Gilas momentarily with a lay-up, 74-73 but Marjanovic once again restored order with back to back baskets to make it 79-76 with 1:03 left.

Gilas had their chances throughout the game but the offense went cold towards the end game.

Ange Kouame paced the nationals with 17 points on 8-of-15 field goals. Jordan Heading had 13 points including four triples, while Kai Sotto and Justine Baltazar each finished with 10.

Serbia only had a slight edge in rebounds, 39-35 while both teams were tied in assists at 21 apiece. Wing man Dwight Ramos, who has been doubtful since prior to the tournament due to a groin injury, did not play.

Serbia also had an unfortunate moment as Stefan Jovic was carried out of the game in the fourth due to a potential hamstring or calf injury.

The Philippines will play Dominican Republic tomorrow for a chance to advance to the next round against either Puerto Rico and Italy.

Boxscores:
Philippines (76) – Kouame 17, Heading 13, Sotto 10, Baltazar 10, Abarrientos 9, Tamayo 5 Go 4, Navarro 4, Nieto 2, Belangel 2.

Serbia (83) – Marjanovic 25, Dobric 16, Teodosic 13, Andjusic 12, Petrusev 8, Davidovac 5, Milosavljevic 2, Jovic 2, Avramovic 0. Quarterscores: 16-22, 34-45, 62-67, 76-83.