𝗦𝗣𝗢𝗥𝗧𝗦 𝗡𝗘𝗪𝗦: "Final shots met: Gilas gains its only victory, kicking off China with a blast" by Ashly Ayhen Jeniebre

 

Published by: Hannah Rondaris

Date Published: September 4, 2023

Time Published: 9:36 AM

MANILA, Philippines - Even beyond the seas, the pretend owners get owned. Gilas Pilipinas finally claimed its first win in the FIBA World Cup 2023 against fierce China in a crushing 96-75 final mark, saving the team from the bottom five box on Saturday, September 2.

Jordan Clarkson, who acted as the Gilas’ shining beacon of hope, powered up the squad with 34 tallies—along with the power play made by Dwight Ramos, Kai Sotto, and Rhenz Abando’s assists and rebounds.

At his peak performance, Clarkson managed to soar his team with consecutive shots: dropping triple three-pointers within four minutes, earning him 20 markers and putting Gilas from 67-50 to 73-50.

Despite the struggling efforts made by China’s Kaier Li, who boosted the team with 17 points, the heated team-play showed off by Gilas amidst the last quarter pushed them through to a huge margin of 21 points.

Gilas started off low during the first moments of the game, but a breakthrough dunk made by Sotto boosted the Blues from a nipping 16-14 record.

It was a fiery shot-by-shot period between the opposing teams before Gilas made their large advantage from China; in which a nerve-wracking battle for points extended itself from the second to the third quarter, carrying out few moments of climaxing scores.

While it was a constant neck-to-neck between the two squads, China’s Li and Zhenlin Zhang did not let themselves fall too short as they persisted to pull a 10-14 lead.

Ending their race with a final bang, Gilas Pilipinas marked down their first and final win for the FIBA World Cup 2023 after a drought of victory for almost a decade.

IMAGE SOURCE:

Cueto, M. (2023). 𝘑𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘢𝘯 𝘊𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘸𝘪𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘍𝘐𝘉𝘈 𝘞𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘊𝘶𝘱 [Photograph]. Inquirer. Retrieved September 2, 2023 from: https://sports.inquirer.net/.../jordan-clarkson-catches... 

REFERENCE:

[1] Philippines v China boxscore - FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023. (2023, September 2). FIBA. https://www.fiba.basketball/.../0209/Philippines-China...