Gilas Pilipinas Basketball

On a mission, Gilas Pilipinas dominated Qatar on the road from the get-go for a rousing 84-46 win in their 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup Asian Qualifiers sixth window match-up played at the Al Gharafa Sports Club Multi-Purpose Hall in Doha.

Returning big man Andray Blatche, who was absent in Gilas’ previous win over Qatar last year due to suspension, carried the nationals throughout the contest, showing the opponents what the squad is capable of when near full strength.

Blatche finished with a game-high 17 points and added 15 rebounds, seven assists, two steals, and two blocks for an all-around performance. Marcio Lassiter, Paul Lee, and Jayson Castro chipped in 14, 13, and 11 points, respectively.

“He is a game changer. He helped us out. He controlled the momentum and the situations of the game. He took a lot of the attention and that’s why (there were many) open shots and a lot of three-point shots,” Gilas head coach Yeng Guiao said of Blatche.

“We had good looks, something we did not have (when he was out). His game speaks for itself.”

The nationals shot a pristine 15-for-30 from three-point range. They also had a big advantage in assists, 21-8, while limiting Qatar to just 27 percent from the field.

Gilas opened the third quarter with five triples–three from Blatche and two from Lee–in a 20-2 run which extended the lead to sizable 51-23.

Qatar was not able to recover from that point, as the visitors cruised to the finish line.

Gilas outscored Qatar in the third quarter, 31-9, with Blatche and Lee combining for 17 in the period.

“We just played great defense. We were consistent from start to finish. The energy was there. The guys worked really hard. Every single one of them,” Guiao said.

The Philippines improved to 6-5 in Group F, boosting their chances of qualifying for World Cup with one game left against Kazakhstan on Sunday, February 24.

“I feel great to be out there with my brothers again. We are not done yet. We still have one more game. We got to take care of it. We are not happy until we get to the World Cup,” Blatche said.

In the other Group F match-up, Japan defeated Iran, 97-89 With the win, Japan and Iran are now tied for second and third spots in Group F with identical 7-4 win-loss cards, while Gilas stays in fourth place.

Gilas will have to wait on the results of China’s, Jordan’s, and Lebanon’s remaining games to see if they’ll advance to the World Cup.

By Levi Verora, Jr.

Photos from fiba.basketball