Pinoy cagers bow to Koreans

MANILA, Philippines - Batang Gilas fought back from a 10-point deficit in the fourth quarter but ran out of time as it fell to South Korea, 74-77, last night for the Filipinos’ first defeat in the FIBA-Asia Under-16 Championship in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Sj Belangel, a Bacolod City native recruited by Ateneo High, missed a triple at the buzzer that would have tied the game, as the Nationals absorbed their first defeat against three wins for a share of second with the Koreans.

The Philippines closes its elimination round campaign as it clashes with powerhouse China, the title favorite which remained unbeaten in four outings including a 91-28 demolition of Thailand earlier.

Trailing at 57-67 with a little over eight minutes to go, the Nationals rallied to within a point, 72-73, with 2.13 minutes to play on a Jonas Tibayan jump shot off a Kris Pagsanjan assist.

But Lee Hyunjung buried a triple off a Yang Jae Min feed to give the Koreans a four-point cushion to weather the Filipinos’ final fightback in the last 1.12 minutes.

Jason Credo scored off a pass from Gian Mamuyac to cut the deficit to two, 74-76 with 10 seconds to go.

Belangel then fouled Kim Dong Jun, who split his free throws, allowing Credo to seize control, pass it to Belangel for the Filipinos final offensive that misfired as time expired.

The Filipinos are eyeing to duplicate, if not surpass, their second place finish in Tehran, Iran two years ago.