France knocks undersized Batang Gilas out of FIBA U17 contention

DUBAI – France exploited its height advantage to the hilt and roughed up Batang Gilas in the paint to score an 86-57 win in the round of 16 of the Fiba U17 World Championship Tuesday night at the Al Ahli Arena here.

Stephane Gombauld typified the French attack in the shaded area, scoring 14 points and pulling down 20 rebounds while Amine Noua hammered his beefy frame inside with 21 points and 12 rebounds as France advanced to the crossover quarterfinals.

Brothers Matt and Mike Nieto carried the fight for the Filipinos, who battled for every possession and made life difficult for the French in the first two quarters before losing steam in the final half.

Batang Gilas, which lost its fourth consecutive game, took a break Wednesday and will play Argentina at the start of the classification round today.

“No Asian team has won over the European and American teams. China and Japan had the same result. It's really difficult,” said Batang Gilas coach Jamike Jarin.

“We're still trying to improve our placing and we're proud of these 12 young kids. We will continue to fight,” he added.

The Filipinos were still in the thick of the fight, trailing by 41-35 at the half and 14 points at the end of the third when their chief gunner Jolo Mendoza pulled his right hamstring and was taken out by Jarin for good.

The injury rendered Mendoza immobile and was later brought to the hospital.

Dominant off the boards, France had 60 rebounds, 19 of them on the offensive end, against the 33 of Batang Gilas.

The French also rotated the ball better with an 18-9 advantage in assists but had more turnovers 19-11 due to the swarming defense of the Filipinos.

“Their (French) height is given. We could compete but something has to give,” said Jarin.

“As long as you give your best no matter what the results are, you should be proud that you represent the country.”

The Filipinos even took the lead at one point on Mendoza's floater, 11-9, before the French gained control.

The Nieto siblings again bridged the gap and turned a seven-point deficit to a 23-25 edge early in the second quarter.

Still within striking distance, they fought for every point until the French rained four three-pointers late in the third that opened a 14-point deficit.

The scores:

FRANCE 86 – Noua 21, Gombauld 14, Loubaki 13, Denis 9, Ponsar 7, Hergott 6, Leboeuf 5, Hufschmidt 5, Jeanne 4, Cortale 2, Labanere 0.

PHILIPPINES 57 – Nieto 12, Nieto 12, Mendoza 9, Dela Cruz 8, Go 6, Desiderio 6, Escoto 2, Dario 2, Panlilio 0, Navarro 0, Padilla 0, Abadeza 0.

Quarters: 20-17, 41-35, 61-47, 86-57