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    Brave Gilas stand falls short as China pulls off Asiad escape

    Brave Gilas stand falls short as China pulls off Asiad escape
    Aug 21, 2018
    PHOTO: Jerome Ascano

    JAKARTA - Title favorite China survived a major fright from a brave Gilas Pilipinas side on Tuesday, 82-80, to top their group heading to the knockout round of the basketball competition in the 2018 Asian Games.

    Guard Zhao Rui broke the Filipinos' hearts in the endgame, scoring four crucial points in a 5-0 finishing kick that enabled the Chinese to pull off the great escape before a roaring crowd at the GBK Basketball Hall.

    That five-point swing put to naught an audacious stand by the Filipinos, who battled back from 12-points down to seize the lead when Stanley Pringle scored inside off China giant Zhou Qi, 80-77, in the final two minutes.

    Gilas was still up, 80-78, after a Zhou free throw, but a turnover by Pringle and a reach-in foul by a cramp-stricken Jordan Clarkson enabled the Chinese to wrest the lead in a thrilling endgame, 82-80.

    When a three-point attempt by Paul Lee from way out rimmed out, Chinese players whooped it up on the floor knowing they had dodged a bullet against a hastily assembled Ph side that played beyond expectations.

    The close win put the Asiad favorites in prime position to top the group heading to its final elimination-round game against Kazakhstan, which the Filipinos beat, 96-59, Thursday to assure themselves of a place in the quarterfinals.

    However, the heartbreaking loss to the Chinese mean Gilas is now in line to meet nemesis Korea at the start of the knockout rounds.

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    Still, national coach Yeng Guiao was not too disappointed in the end, pointing out that his rag-tag team of PBA players were formed barely two weeks before the Asiad.

    "I don't see this as a loss," he said defiantly.

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      Clarkson, the Cleveland Cavaliers guard who joined the team just four days earlier, had 28 points but had to watch a crucial stretch of the endgame from the sidelines after being bogged down by cramps on both feet.

      But his teammates picked up the slack, with Christian Standhardinger chipping in 18 points and eight rebounds, Pringle adding 14 points. Lee 10 and Poy Erram two three-pointers in a surprise start.

      "After he cramped, Jordan couldn't play his 100-percent best," Guiao said. "But even without him in there we still played well."

      Zhou, who plays for the Houston Rockets in the NBA, had 25 points and 12 rebounds. His seven blocks also allowed China to lead by as many as 12 points in the ballgame.

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        But the Filipino cagers didn’t give up.

        A 10-0 run brought the Philippines back into the game with Lee draining a three and Standhardinger hitting two free throws for a 76-74 lead.

        China's other towering frontliner, Wang Zhelin, was also a thorn in the side of the Filipinos finish with 13 points and seven rebounds, while Abudurexiti Abudushalamu had 12 points and eight rebounds off the bench.

        The scores:

        China 82 – Zhou 25, Wang 13, Abdurexiti 12, Zhao 11, Ding 7, Sun 6, Liu 5, Fang 2, Dong 1.

        Philippines 80 – Clarkson 28, Standhardinger 18, Pringle 14, Lee 10, Erram 6, Almazan 2, Belga 2, Norwood 0, Ahanmisi 0, Yap 0, Taulava 0.

        Quarters: 20-12; 36-31; 59-57; 82-80.

        Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph

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        PHOTO: Jerome Ascano
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