The Philippine National Basketball Team, Gilas Pilipinas suffered their second straight defeat in the 2014 Asian Games after Qatar outscored the Filipinos during the Quarterfinals on Friday, September 26, 2014. The Gilas Pilipinas vs. Qatar basketball match ended with the final score at 68-77 in favor of the Gulf nation, Qatar.
Here’s the Highlights of the Gilas vs. Qatar (2014 Asian Games):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_a8G1UAWYg
With the defeat of Gilas Pilipinas, they need to win their next two games in the competition to secure a spot in the semi-finals of the men’s basketball tournament of the 2014 Asian Games held in Incheon, South Korea. The Filipinos must win against South Korea and Kazakhstan on their next assignments.
Gilas Pilipinas started out good during the first quarter and even leading the first half of the match with 39 points against Qatar’s 36 points. The Qataris executed perfectly their adjustments at the start of the second half by scoring five straight three-pointers and open up a 51-39 lead.
The Filipinos struggled mightily in the second half without a field goal until the last 1:24 mark when team captain Jimmy Alapag lifted Gilas for his first three-points of three straight three-pointers, sparking a 9-2 run to come within striking distance at 51-56 in favor of Qatar.
The Gilas Pilipinas came closer with just four points deficit at 59-63 with just 6:18 remaining in the fourth quarter, but Qatar strike back and scored five unanswered points. The last shot of Gilas was courtesy of Jimmy Alapag who hits the three pointer to cut the deficit to six points with the score at 68-74.
The Philippines will face tomorrow the home team, South Korea on their must-win games to keep the country’s dream of winning Asian Games gold medal alive.
