GILAS Pilipinas erased an early double-digit deficit to come within five points at the half against Jordan, 44-39, on Friday in the FIBA Basketball World Cup Asian Qualifiers at the Mall of Asia Arena.
The Philippines trailed by as many as 18 points, but came roaring back in the second quarter to make it a manageable game thanks to Kai Sotto, who had seven points and five rebounds in the first half.
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AJ Edu and Carl Tamayo led Gilas in scoring in the first half with eight points each, with Tamayo draining a three with one second left to close the half.
Dwight Ramos and Kevin Quiambao chipped in seven each as the young guns also fueled their running game to make up ground on hot-shooting Jordan, which shot 6-of-8 from threes in the first half.
Naturalized player Jalen Harris led the way when the Falcons opened a 26-8 lead at one point in that quarter. He went 4-of-6 from three-point distance and led the team with 14 points at the break.
Jordan was still leading, 32-15, when the Philippines went on a 12-0 run highlighted by a Sotto dunk in transition to the delight of the home crowd.
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