TO NOBODY’S surprise, the Gilas Cadets handily beat the hosts Singapore, 82-56, to rule the 11th Southeast Asian Basketball Association (Seaba) Championship last Friday at the OCBC Arena in Singapore.
Long-time naturalized player Marcus Douthit, who hasn’t seen much action in the competition due to the lopsided nature of the Gilas’ games, finally broke out and had 16 points and seven rebounds to help the country come away with a perfect 5-0 win-loss record. Kiefer Ravena added 15 while Cagayan de Oro-native Jiovani Jalalon added 12.
Already assured of a spot in the Fiba Asia Championship which will be held in China later this year, the Gilas kept the pedal to the metal and outclassed a Singapore squad that was more than game in the opening period. However, the
Philippines’ firepower eventually proved to be more than Singapore could handle as they cruised to the easy win.
So dominant was the Gilas that they finished the tournament with an average winning margin of 68.4 points, capped by an incredible 111-point rout of Brunei last Thursday.
BOX SCORES:
PHILIPPINES (82) – Douthit 16, Ravena 15, Jalalon 12, Escoto 9, Parks 8, Ferrer 7, Belo 4, Rosario 4, Vosotros 2, Torres 2, Khobuntin 2, Thompson 1.
SINGAPORE (56)- W.Wong 17, Q. Wu 16, H. Liew 10, H. Ng 8, W. Oh 3, W. Low 2, Q. Toh 0, W. Kwek 0, Y. Khaw 0, K. Goh 0.
Quarter Scores: 26-19, 51-30, 75-47, 82-56