THE Gilas Pilipinas saw their title hopes in the King Abdullah Cup come to an end at the hands of the host team Jordan, 84-74, in the semifinals on Sunday morning, August 2, 2021, at the Prince Hamza Hall in Amman.
The Gilas trailed by as much as 15 points but rallied to within four, 68-72, after a deuce by naturalized player Ange Kouame with over three minutes remaining. But Jordan proved to be the steadier team as Sami Bzai canned a triple while Cameron Forte and Ahmad Al Dwairi sank baskets to bring their lead back to 79-70 with less than two minutes left.
Al Dwairi filled the stat sheet with 19 points, 16 rebounds and seven assists while Forte also had 19 points to go with six boards and three assists. Fadi Mustafa chipped in 17 points, eight dimes and six boards as the Falcons moved on to the championship round where they will face off against Egypt.
The loss was the Philippines’ second in as many games to Jordan. They also lost to the Falcons, 84-72, in their last game in the preliminary round.
Kouame was the lone player to reach double-figures with 20 points and six boards. Jordan Heading had nine while Dave Ildefonso and Thirdy Ravena added eight markers each. The Gilas just could not find their mark from the three-point area as they missed 21 of their 28 attempts.
Gilas would be taking on Tunisia for third place honors. (JNP)