Gilas Pilipinas Boys fall big to Australia in Fiba U18 Asia Cup

Gilas Pilipinas Boys walk off the court following a loss to Australia in the Fiba U18 Asia Cup in India.–FIBA PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Gilas Pilipinas Boys were dominated by Australia, 107-69, in the Fiba U18 Asia Cup on Saturday at Veer Savarkar Indoor Stadium in Ahmedabad, India.

The defending champions were just too much for the Filipinos, as they broke the game wide open in the second quarter and led by as many as 42 points late in the game after Isaac Riddle hit two free throws with 57 seconds remaining.

The Aussies, eyeing their third Fiba U18 title, cruised to 2-0 in Group A. They outrebounded Gilas, 60-30.

READ: Gilas Youth survives Chinese Taipei comeback in Fiba U18 opener

The top seed of each pool will get an outright quarterfinal ticket, while the second and third teams will compete for the remaining four quarterfinal berths.

Yahya Basaran led Australia’s onslaught with 17 points and eight rebounds. John Aryang had 16 points and five steals. Bailey Hanson tallied 14 points, seven assists, and four steals, while Riddle and Jai Fa’ale added 12 points each, with the former grabbing eight rebounds.

Gilas Boys remained second in Group A with a 1-1 record. They face Thailand next on Monday.

George Aidan Green and Luke Edward Atacador paced the Philippines with 12 points each. Jan Bennett Cagurungan and Elias Troy Gish added nine points each.

Ethan Matthew Aguas, who drilled the game-winning jumper with 2.4 seconds remaining to save Gilas from a 27-point meltdown against Chinese Taipei, 89-88, was limited to just six points.