FIBA Asia U-18 Championship: Sweet-shooting Chinese Taipei eliminates Batang Gilas
Batang Gilas lost to a steadier Chinese Taipei squad 90-86 to bow out in the quarterfinals of the FIBA Asia Under-18 Championship in Doha, Qatar.
In a tightly contested match, Chinese Taipei showed more poise as they nailed they free throws and took care of the ball well in the end game.
Paul Desiderio knotted the score at 86-all with 1:18 left in the game. However, Ming-Yi Lin nailed a huge triple on the next play to swing the momentum back to their side. Batang Gilas turned the ball over in the next possession, which gave the Taiwanese the chance to put the game away.
The Taiwanese missed on a dagger three attempt to give Batang Gilas a shot at sending the game into overtime with 17 seconds left in the clock.
The Filipinos went for a quick two but they missed on two attempts. A free throw from Chinese Taipei sealed the fate of Batang Gilas.
Ssu-Han Tu led Chinese Taipei with 23 points and six rebounds. He shot four of nine from the three-point range and also scored the game-sealing free throw.
As a team, the Taiwanese made 13 triples compared to only four for the Philippines. Batang Gilas stayed close as they outscored Chinese Taipei 54-32 inside the paint.
Mark Anthony Dyke led the Philippines with 26 points and 13 rebounds on 12 of 18 shooting from the field. Radge Tongco added 16 points and eight assists while Kobe Paras chipped in 15 points, 11 rebounds, three assists, three steals, and three blocks.
With the win, the Taiwanese settled a semifinals showdown against China.
Chinese Taipei started the game with a 13-6 run. Dyke then went off for the Philippines as he scored on a barrage of baskets inside to power Batang Gilas to a 29-25 advantage after the first 10 minutes.
Led by the sweet shooting Kuan-Yi Lee, the Taiwanese fought back to take a 55-51 advantage at the half.
Chinese Taipei shot an astounding 10 of 19 from the three point area led by Lee who had four triples while Tu added three in the first 20 minutes.
Batang Gilas relied on Dyke who already had 16 points and eight rebounds after the first half. Paul Desiderio added nine points for the Philippines while Kobe Paras had eight points, five rebounds, two assists, and two steals.
They, however, failed to take care of the basketball as they had 16 turnovers while Chinese Taipei only had eight.
The Taiwanese tried their best to shake off the Filipinos in the third quarter. They stretched their lead to nine at 65-56 after a basket from Tu.
Batang Gilas got within three, 68-65, after baskets from Dyke and Radge Tongco. This run was aided by a block and an assist from Paras.
A basket from Leonard Santillan got the Philippines within a point of Chinese Taipei, 75-74, heading into the final quarter.
Joshua Andrei Caracut started the fourth with a basket to take the lead for Batang Gilas.
Dyke scored at the 6:45 mark to give Batang Gilas an 80-77 lead but Tu quickly tied the game with a triple on the other end.
The Philippines could have taken control of the game but they committed crucial turnovers in the game’s closing minutes. Free throws from Yung-Cheng Sun gave Chinese Taipei an 83-82 lead and Tu added a basket at the 2:46 mark of the fourth to extend their lead to three.
Paras made two free throws on the other hand to cut their deficit down to a single point at 85-84.
In the first two games of the quarterfinals, the higher ranked teams eliminated the upset seeking teams as China defeated Kazakhstan and South Korea eliminated Japan.
Iran is expected to complete the final four cast of the FIBA Asia Under-18 Championship as they are huge favorites against Malaysia.
The scores:
Chinese Taipei 90: Tu 23, Lee 17, Lin 16, Tseng 14, Sun 11m Sun 5, Chen 3, Hsu 1, Tseng 0, Lai 0, Ke 0, Chang 0.
Philippines 86: Dyke 26, Tongco 16, Paras 15, Desiderio 11, Santillan 8, Caracut 7, Escoto 3, Black 0, Yu 0, Mosqueda 0, Bienes 0, Go 0.
Quarters: 25-29, 55-51, 75-74, 90-86.
