HANOI – LeBron Lopez stood out in his Southeast Asian Games debut as he led Gilas Pilipinas to a 100-32 romp over Cambodia on Tuesday at the Thanh Tri Gymnasium.
Lopez wowed the audience with his high-flying moves to finish with 17 points, five rebounds, and two blocks as Gilas made it two wins in a row, venting its ire on hapless Cambodia after a nervy outing against Thailand.
[See Gilas survives fright against Thailand in SEAG debut]
With the result already in the books as early as the first quarter, Gilas coach Chot Reyes took the opportunity to dig deep in his bench particularly the younger players in the team ahead of the important games ahead.
“We actually didn’t think about the margin,” said Gilas Pilipinas coach Chot Reyes. “We talked about making sure that we stay sharp and play at our level and respect the game. And that means respecting also respecting the opponents.”
Gilas Pilipinas went on a 27-3 run after conceding the lead, 6-5, with Matthew Wright and Kib Montalbo converting their shots.
It was mostly the youngsters from there with Lopez, who was celebrating his 19th birthday on Tuesday, scoring on dunks to the delight of a predominantly Filipino crowd in the first half.
Gilas won emphatically against Cambodia after a slim 76-73 win over Thailand on Sunday at the start of their campaign in the biennial meet.
William Navarro had 16 points and seven rebounds, and Jaydee Tungcab had 14 points and five steals for Gilas Pilipinas, which will face Singapore on Wednesday.
Matthew Wright scored 10 points and shot 2 of 3 from threes, while Montalbo had eight points and five steals.
The scores:
Philippines 100 – Lopez 17, Navarro 16, Tungcab 14, Go 13, Wright 10, Montalbo 8, T. Ravena 5, Fajardo 5, Rosario 4, Pogoy 4, K. Ravena 2, Tautuaa 2.
Cambodia 32 – Seng 8, Tep 7, So 7, Hu 6, Chin 2, Soy 2, Kun 0, Thea 0, Khou 0, Te 0.
Quarters: 32-9; 57-17; 71-23; 100-32.
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