JORDAN Clarkson certainly made instant impact for Gilas Pilipinas.
The Utah Jazz shooter wasted no time showing his pedigree, leading the way with 18 points in the first half alone as the Filipinos trailed Lebanon, 49-47, on Friday morning in the 2023 Fiba World Cup Asian qualifiers.
Clarkson was all over the floor for Gilas, dropping 11 of his points in the first quarter while making a living on the free throw line shooting 8-of-9 before rabid Lebanon home fans at the Nouhad Nawfal Sports Complex in Beirut.
[READ: Australia, N Zealand stay unbeaten in qualifiers]
The NBA player capped off his stupendous first half with a booming three to cut the Cedars' lead down to two after two frames.
Aside from scoring, Clarkson has also shared the rock with his three assists, including a baseball pass that led to a Kai Sotto dunk on the other end.
His stellar play hasn't adored him with the Lebanon crowd which has rained boos on him everytime he touched the ball.
The Philippines, however, must do better in protecting the basketball as it committed nine turnovers in the second period that allowed Lebanon to take the lead before the break.
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