Gilas boys finish last in Fiba U17 World Cup


Australia’s Dash Daniels, middle, tries to score against Gilas Pilipinas in the Fiba U17 World Cup in Turkey.–FIBA PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—Gilas Pilipinas boys wound up in last place after a dreadful campaign in the Fiba Under-17 World Cup.

Gilas placed 16th following a 115-53 beating at the hands of Australia in the classification match on Sunday (Manila time) at Ahmet Comert Sports Hall in Istanbul, Turkey.

The young Nationals scored the game’s first points but the match quickly went away from them, trailing 31-16, after the opening period.

READ: Gilas boys lose to USA by 96, bow out of Fiba U17 World Cup

Gilas, which was coming off a 19-point loss to China on Saturday, never recovered and saw the deficit balloon to as many as 62 points. The Filipinos shot just 30 percent from the field, including 5-of-34 from long distance.

Edryn Morales posted 17 points and nine rebounds for Gilas, which sorely missed the services of its main man Kieffer Alas. Alas was ruled out of the tournament due to a knee injury.

Dash Daniels paced the Australians with 28 points, four rebounds and four assists while Nash Walker contributed 18 points.

Australia, which shot 59 percent from the field and knocked down 16 3-pointers, also drew a near-double-double effort from Joel Robinson, who tallied 11 points and nine boards.

It marked the first time Gilas finished dead last at 16th in the U17 World Cup since its qualification in 2014. The Philippines finished 15th in 2014 and 13th in 2018.



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Gilas boys lose to USA by 96, bow out of Fiba U17 World Cup


Gilas Pilipinas boys against Team USA in the 2024 Fiba U17 World Cup Round of 16. -FIBA PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—Gilas Pilipinas Boys absorbed another brutal defeat to bow out of the 2024 Fiba U17 World Cup Round of 16 in Istanbul, Turkey on Wednesday night (Manila time).

The Philippines suffered a disheartening 96-point loss at the hands of United States, 141-45, at Ahmet Comert Sports Hall, ending its hopes for a podium finish on the global stage.

This after finishing the group phase without a win capped off by a 98-53 defeat at the hands of Puerto Rico on Tuesday.

READ: Gilas boys get crushed by Lithuania in Fiba U17 World Cup opener

Like the Gilas boys’ previous games, the Filipinos went on a slow start that gave them an insurmountable disadvantage until the final buzzer.

Team USA, on the other hand, began the game with an electrifying 43-13 opening period.

Eight players from USA scored in double digits headlined by a 22-point outburst from Koa Peat. Cam Boozer scored 20 while Jalen Haralson, Caleb Holt and Chris Cenac added 16, 14 and 14 points, respectively.

Joaquin Ludovice finished with 15 points n the loss that relegated Gilas in the classification phase. while CJ Amos dropped 10 points.

The Gilas boys await the other teams in the classification round, giving them either two or three days of rest before going back in action.



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Gilas Pilipinas boys lose big anew in Fiba U17 World Cup


Photo from Fiba

MANILA, Philippines—Gilas Pilipinas Boys still can’t catch a break in the Fiba U17 World Cup.

After absorbing a demoralizing 107-48 loss to Lithuania on Saturday, Gilas swallowed another crushing defeat, this time at the hands of Spain.

Spain made easy work of the Gilas boys, 96-34, in Group A of the tournament at Sinan Erdem Dome in Istanbul, Turkey late Sunday night (Manila time).

Gilas boys get crushed by Lithuania in Fiba U17 World Cup 

The young Nationals never stood a chance after falling, 30-2, in the opening period.

Joaquin Ludovice was the only Gilas player to score in the first frame after making a layup at the 5:17 mark that came following Spain’s 16-0 start.

Gilas, which is missing its best player in Kieffer Alas due to a knee injury, just didn’t have enough firepower to make it a game against powerhouse Spain.

READ: Kieffer Alas out of Gilas boys lineup for Fiba U17 World Cup

Spain dominated the rebounding department, 71-22, and held the Philippines to only 22 percent shooting from the field.

Bonn Daja was the lone double-digit scorer for Gilas with 12 points. He also grabbed five rebounds.

Maximo Garcia-Plata led Spain with a near-triple-double effort, collecting 15 points, seven rebounds and nine assists while Ignacio Campoy posted 13 points and 11 rebounds.

Two more players hit double-digits for Spain with Guillermo Del Pino and Eric Del Castillo scoring 14 and 13 points, respectively.

Gilas looks to end its campaign on a positive note when it faces Puerto Rico on Tuesday.



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Gilas boys get crushed by Lithuania in Fiba U17 World Cup opener


Gilas Pilipinas boys’ CJ Amos against a Lithuanian defender in the Fiba U17 World Cup. –FIBA BASKETBALL

MANILA, Philippines—Lithuania proved to be too much to handle for the Gilas Pilipinas Boys, scoring a dominant 107-48 win in Group A of the Fiba Under-17 World Cup at Sinan Erdem Dome in Istanbul, Turkey, on Saturday (Manila time).

Backed by a strong opening, the Lithuanians dealt the Philippines an insurmountable lead that Gilas couldn’t come close to cutting down for the remainder of the game.

Already holding a 46-29 at the intermission, Lithuania torched the Philippines with a 13-2 run to open the third period capped off by a Majus Bulanovas triple at the 7:34 mark.

 SCHEDULE: Gilas Pilipinas at Fiba U17 Basketball World Cup

The third quarter was Gilas’ worst frame as the Filipinos only scored seven points while the Lithuanians fired on all cylinders with 35.

Height is might and the Lithuanians showed just that, as they demolished the Philippines in the rebounding department, 61-32.

Lithuania hounded the Gilas boys on defense with 10 steals and eight blocks overall, as a team, limiting the Nationals to a measly 21.9 percent field goal shooting clip while shooting 53.5 percent as a squad.

READ: Kieffer Alas out of Gilas boys roster for Fiba U17 World Cup

With Kieffer Alas out of the lineup due to a knee injury, CJ Amos led the Philippines with 10 points and three assists but to no avail. Kurt Velasquez struggled mightily for his eight points, sinking just three of his 14 tries from the field for Gilas.

Arturas Butajevas finished just a rebound shy of a double-double with 22 points and nine rebounds for Lithuania. Kajus Mikalauskas scored 15 while Erikas Sirgedas and Dovydas Buika finished with 14 and 12 points, respectively.

Up next for the Gilas Boys is Spain at the same venue on Sunday at 8:30 pm.



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Kieffer Alas out of Gilas boys lineup for Fiba U17 World Cup


Gilas Pilipinas Boys’ Kieffer Alas is named in the All-Star Five at the Fiba U16 Asian Championship in Doha, Qatar.–FIBA PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—Gilas Pilipinas boys will compete in the 2024 Fiba Under-17 World Cup in Istanbul without its star guard Kieffer Alas.

In Fiba’s final roster released ahead of Saturday’s opening game day, Alas was not part of the lineup due to a knee injury he suffered in the Gilas boys’  last tune-up game against Canada.

“On initial examination by our team doctor, he had a functionally stable knee and the official result of his MRI determined Kieffer has a sprained ACL,” said head coach Josh Reyes. “His knee is swollen and he’ll be out for three weeks. We will be monitoring his situation closely.”

SCHEDULE: Gilas Pilipinas at Fiba U17 World Cup

Alas, a member of the UAAP Season 86 boys’ basketball Mythical Five, will sit out the competition but fellow La Salle Zobel standout Irus Chua will still add a hue of Green and White to the roster.

“It’s a tough break for us but the rest of the team is motivated to play together. We’re praying for good results on Kieffer’s MRI but we have to move forward and quickly figure out how to play without him,” Reyes said.

READ: Kieffer Alas makes Fiba Asia U16 All-Star Five

“Kieffer was doing a great job in playmaking, rebounding, and playing defense and this is his value to the squad, more than his scoring.”

Dominic Arejola took Alas’ spot for the Gilas boys, who will play Lithuania on Saturday in their first assignment in the World Cup.

University of Santo Tomas talents Joaquin Ludovice and Kurt Velasquez were also included in the lineup.

Ludovice made noise not too long ago by cracking the NBTC 24 list, an annual ladder of the best high-school players in the country. He was listed as the 20th-best high school player.

They will be joined by 5-foot-11 athletic guard Elijah Williams, Blue Eagle star Mason Amos’ younger brother CJ and lanky 6-foot-4 wing Edryn Morales.

Also joining the pack are Davao Bulldog Bonn Daja, the tallest man in the lineup at 6-foot-6 in Paul Diao, UP Integrated School Talent Jaime Gomez de Liaño and California-bred Samuel Alegre.

Rounding out the lineup is Noah Banal, who, alongside Williams, Amos, Morales, Daja, Diao, de Liaño, and Alegre finished fourth in the U16 Asian Championship.



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Gilas is grouped in Pool A with Spain, Puerto Rico and Lithuania.