The Gilas Pilipinas national boys basketball team couldn’t maintain their early lead and suffered a 62-56 loss to host Jordan in the FIBA Under-18 Asian Championship on Tuesday night (Wednesday morning, Manila time) at the Arena Complex in Amman, Jordan.
The Josh Reyes-led Gilas Pilipinas Boys struggled with their shots, especially from the three-point area, as they dropped to a tie with the host team with a 1-1 win-loss record in Group D.
Gilas actually took a 30-24 lead early in the second period, but Jordan managed to turn things around for a slim 36-34 halftime advantage.
Both teams struggled with their shots in the third period before Jordan opened the fourth quarter with a 7-0 run to establish a 52-40 advantage.
Gilas threatened within 56-59 with under a minute remaining in the fourth period, but free throws from Jordan sealed the win for them.
Mark Esperanza finished with 14 points and nine rebounds to lead Gilas Pilipinas Boys, while Wilhalm Lawrence Cabonillas was held to just nine points on 2-of-8 shooting in the loss.
The Gilas Pilipinas Boys will conclude their group stage against the mighty New Zealand squad later tonight (Manila time).
The top three teams in each group will move on to the playoffs, with the top seed earning an automatic berth in the quarterfinals.
The post Gilas Pilipinas Boys bow to Jordan in FIBA U-18 first appeared on Fastbreak.
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