Gilas Men dethrone Chinese-Taipei, make Asian Games 3x3 semis

September 25 ------ GILAS Pilipinas just won't allow Chinese Taipei to make it two in a row at the country's expense. Nic Cabanero and Co. dethroned Chinese Taipei in a thrilling quarterfinal game that went down the wire, 21-19, and booked a berth in the semifinals of the 20th Asian Games men's 3x3 basketball competitions in Nagoya, Japan.

Koji Buenaflor scored in the final 38 second to break a tight 19-all contest, before Luis Pablo clinched the dramatic win with a hard drive to the basket. The victory came just hours after Chinese Taipei ousted Gilas Pilipinas women's team, 83-71, in the quarterfinals of the 5-on-5 basketball tournament.

Cabanero led the Filipino charge with eight points, Pablo had six, David Dungo with five, and Buenaflor with two, but the latter grabbed 10 rebounds as Gilas clobbered Chinese Taipei off the boards, 26-12. Coach Patrick Fran said the celebration will be brief for the Filipinos as a bigger battle awaits them against South Korea in the semifinals for a shot at vying for the gold medal.

The South Koreans took down China, 22-13, in the other quarterfinal pairing. Yeh Wei-chieh led Chinese Taipei with 10 points and whose free throw put his side on top, 18-17, with 1:17 left in the tightly-contested game. Dungo then hit a 2 to give Gilas back the lead, before Yeh made another free throw to tie the game for the last time 19 in the final 71 seconds. Meanwhile, the other semifinals will pit Qatar versus Iran. The Qataris defeated Mongolia, 18-14, while the Iranians whipped Japan, 21-3.

The scores

Philippines (21) - Cabanero 8, Pablo 6, Dungo 5, Buenaflor 2.

Chinese Taipei (19) - Yeh 10, Chang 5, Tzou 3, Hsu 1.

Source: spin.ph