Gilas rally falls short as Jordan escapes with win

BOCAUE, Bulacan — Jordan survived a 41-point explosion by Gilas Pilipinas naturalized player Justin Brownlee as they repulsed the Filipinos, 91-90, in the final window of the 2023 FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers here at the Philippine Arena on Monday.

Costly misses from the free throw line by Scottie Thompson botched Gilas’ comeback try after the Filipinos rallied back from as many as 25 points.

With a little over 30 ticks left on the clock, Thompson could not make either of his free throws after being fouled by Mohammad Hussein, as Gilas trailed by one point.

Though Gilas pulled off a defensive stop in the next possession, Ray Parks Jr. missed the potential game-winner as time ran out on the Filipinos.

"I'm gonna learn from this and sobrang dami kong nabigong mga Pilipino so, masakit for me but I think ito yung pinakabest na ni-remind sakin na I have to get better," said Thompson after the game.

A hot-shooting Jordan side buried the Philippines early as they led the home team, 41-16, after a Zaid Abbas triple with 8:23 left in the second quarter.

But the Nationals did not go down without a fight as Brownlee erupted for 17 points in a pivotal third quarter that saw Gilas outscore Lebanon, 23-10.

In the fourth period, Gilas first tied the match at 81-all after a Ray Parks Jr. triple with 5:27 remaining in the match but Ahmad Alhamarsheh broke the deadlock quickly with a triple of his own.

Gilas then knotted the ball game again at 88-all with 1:49 left.

But the fightback fell painstackingly short after Thompson was called for a technical foul in the next possession, which sent Freddy Ibrahim to the free throw line and gave the ball back to Jordan.

Ibrahim made his free throw, then Caden Chudri Zuheir Alnajdawi converted on a dunk in the extra possession to give them a three-point cushion, 91-88.

Brownlee capped off his insane scoring night with a jumper to get the Filipinos within one, 91-90, with 1:30 remaining in the game.

Apart from his 41 points, Brownlee finished with a double-double as he tallied 12 boards to go along with three assists and a block.

Gilas thus saw its four-game win streak busted, finishing the qualifiers with a 6-4 slate. Jordan has an identical record and heads to the World Cup with a three-game win streak.

Jordan leaned on Dar Tucker’s 22 points and 12 rebounds in the win. Freddy Ibrahim, who paced Jordan’s strong start, added 19 and eight eight dimes.

For Gilas, only Jamie Malonzo was the only other player to breach double-digit scoring with 11 points.

Thompson, for his part, played an all-around game with nine points, seven rebounds, seven assists and a steal.