WHAT started as an anomaly finished with the same supremacy as Gilas Pilipinas thumped Thailand, 108-53, to roll to another win in the Southeast Asian Basketball Association Championship (Seaba) on Tuesday night.
Taking on their first real test, the Filipino dribblers led by just four points after the first quarter, but turned it up a notch from thereon to coast to their fourth straight victory in front of a sizeable crowd at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum.
Japeth Aguilar provided the biggest spark off the bench, firing 23 points after making all his nine shots, on top of grabbing five boards in just 17 minutes to lead the Filipinos who dealt the Thais their second loss in five games.
“My first words in the pregame was that we will be tested in this ballgame,” national coach Chot Reyes said. “They’re long, athletic, and they are well-coached. We knew that we would get tested.”
“But when we got used to their length, we were able to make some adjustments,” he added.
Gilas takes on Vietnam next on Thursday.
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