LEBANON hit its strides as Gilas Pilipinas’ guns went silent in a 75-54 loss early Sunday (Manila time) in the 2nd Doha International Cup.
The Cedars played without stars Wael Arakji and Omari Spellman, but Jad Khalil, James Majok and Gerard Hadidian took care of business for the team, going on a crucial 14-2 run in the fourth quarter to tear apart a game that was tightly-contested for the first three periods.
That scoring outburst opened up a 65-50 Lebanon lead after Gilas closed within 51-50 for the last time, silencing the pro-Filipino crowd that packed the Qatar University Sports and Events Complex for the second straight night.
The loss was the first for the Philippines after opening its scheduled three-game friendlies with a thrilling 74-71 come-from-behind win over host Qatar Saturday morning (Manila time).
READ: Gilas Pilipinas pulls off thrilling comeback against Qatar
The Cedars also evened their record at 1-1 after losing to Egypt in their first game, 82-70.
Gilas ends the tournament by taking on Egypt early Monday morning (Manila time).
The Pharaohs whipped host Qatar, 83-54, to stay undefeated in the three-day meet. The Qataris lost for the second straight game.
Justine Brownlee waxed hot early on for Gilas and finished with a game-high 21 points and 11 rebounds.
But the naturalized player also went cold during that fourth quarter stretch as he failed to score a basket, further compounded the scoring woes of the national team.
In all, the Cedars outscored the Filipinos in the final 10 minutes, 24-6.
With Arakji and Spellman skipping the tournament, Khalil showed the way for Lebanon with 18 points on 3-of-7 shooting from beyond the arc. Hadidian also had the same output of 18 while adding eight rebounds.
Karim Zeinoun likewise finished in double figures for the Cedars with 13 points and nine rebounds, while the 37-year-old Majok had 12 and nine boards.
Calvin Oftana was the other Gilas player in double figures with 10, followed by Scottie Thompson with seven points and 11 rebounds.
Gilas pounded the boards by outrebounding Lebanon, 48-42, but committed more turnovers, 19-14, that led to the Cedars outscoring the Filipinos in points off turnovers, 26-5.
The Philippines also shot just 30 percent from the field (21-of-69) compared to the 38 percent of Lebanon (27-of-67).
The scores:
Lebanon 75 - Hadidian 18, Khalil 18, Zeinoun 13, Majok 12, Mezher 8, Rtail 4, Makhlouf 2, Khoueiry 0, Samaha 0, Moussa 0.
Philippines 54 - Brownlee 21, Oftana 10, Thompson 7, Edu 6, Ramos 5, Fajardo 2, Newsome 1, Quiambao 1, Perez 1, Tamayo 0, Amos 0, Malonzo 0.
Quarters: 13-12; 26-28; 51-48; 75-54.
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