Cebuano RR Pogoy drives past the defense of Indonesia in the last game of the SEABA Championships at the Araneta Coliseum.
Philippine National Basketball Team destroys Indonesia to complete tournament sweep
Gilas Pilipinas made true to its word and punched a ticket to the Asian championships, beating Indonesia, 97-64, to sweep the 2017 Seaba Championship yesterday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Andray Blatche paved the way for the Philippines’ successful title defense, going 7-of-12 from the field and 4-of-7 from threes to finish with 21 points and 10 rebounds in just three quarters to lead the home team to the victory.
Undefeated going to the final game of the tournament, the Indonesians posed the biggest threat to the country’s throne.
But Blatche and Jayson Castro William were quick to bring Indonesia back to Earth as the duo buckled down to work early and anchored the Philippines’ offensive flurry, stringing 12 straight points to set the tone for the game with an early 22-point cushion, 34-12 late in the first quarter.
Though the offense seemed to have soured in the second frame, Gilas came out sniping anew in the next two periods, with Terrence Romeo and Matthew Wright soon finding their range to open the floodgates and cruise to its sixth straight win.
With its eighth Seaba Championship in the bag, Gilas will now prepare for the Asia-Pacific heavyweights as it advances to the 2017 Fiba Asia Cup on August in Lebanon.
The Batang Gilas Pilipinas also claimed the Under-16 Championship with an 83-62 victory over Malaysia, sweeping the regional youth competition for its fourth straight title.