China survives Clarkson, Team Philippines with 82-80 squeaker

MANILA, Philippines — Powerhouse China turned back a pesky Philippine side, 82-80, in Group D play of the 2018 Asian Games men’s basketball tournament Tuesday night at the Gelora Bung Karno Basketball Hall, in Jakarta, Indonesia.

The Chinese, who sat squarely on the driver seat for the first three quarters, leaned on Zhou Qi for a cushion against the hastily-assembled Filipino squad.

But the Philippines, bolstered with National Basketball Association cager Jordan Clarkson, patiently chafed on the lead. The Filipino-American led a blistering outing in the second frame that saw the Nationals hold down perennial Asian Games hoops champions to just 16 points.

China's Rui Zhao, right, shoots for a basket as Philippines' Jordan Clarkson, left, and Gabriel Norwood watch. | AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

With barely a week in training with his fellow Filipinos, Clarkson helped the squad tie the game at 55 in the third quarter.

Stanley Pringle’s brilliant and equally blurry slashing play buoyed the team in the final frame. PBA rookie Christian Standhardinger added in the effort as the Filipinos took over the driver seat at the 3:09 mark via the Fil-German big man's free throw. 

Pringle, the top scorer in the win over Kazakhstan last Thursday, hiked the lead just as their assignments kept them within striking range, digging the team out of a what was once a 12-point rut. 

Zhou and Zhao Rui remained unfazed under pressure as they went on to help China knot the game anew — this time, at 80 and with just 46 ticks left on the clock.

Zhao’s productive trip from the charity stripe gave China a two-point lead to enjoy as the game wound down. He accounted for four points in the crucial turnaround along with a momentum-swinging steal.

Paul Lee, who made a couple of booming triples to help the momentum swing to the Filipinos’ favor had another clean look within the final six seconds of the game, but his shot was just too strong.

Philippines players wave to the crowd after their loss to China. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)

The Filipinos, despite the loss, are assured of a berth in the next round of hostilities barring any major upset when China takes on Kazakhstan on Thursday. 

The loss, though, puts Team Philippines in a collision course against, regional nemeses Korea in the next round.   


The statistical breakdown of the Philippines-China Group D match in the 2018 Asiad men's basketball tourney. (Asian Games)