MANILA, Philippines -- Gilas Pilipinas showed a marked improvement despite losing their second game in a row in the 2015 Four Nations Toyota Cup in Estonia.
Barely 24 hours after Netherlands dealt them a 27-point beating, Gilas managed to outplay Estonia, considered as the best team in this pocket tournament, in the second half before coming up short in an 80-90 loss early Saturday (Manila time).
Gilas started out flat in their second game as they fell behind early by 15, 33-18, after the opening quarter. The home team's lead swelled to 23 in the second period before Gilas finally hit their strides from the outside. But the Estonians, who have been practicing since June for the EuroBasket, played as the better unit shown on their crisp passing and their accurate shooting.
The Philippine national pool had some anxious moments when Calvin Abueva fell hard on his back while contesting a shot. But the Alaska forward managed to return after resting on the bench. However, he fouled midway in the third quarter after committing a technical foul.
Gilas managed to cut the deficit into single digit, 86-77, on a Terrence Romeo triple with two minutes to play. But Andray Blatche missed an ill-advised trey as the Estonians milked the clock to run away with the 10-point victory and remained unbeaten in the short tournament.
The 6-foot-9 Janar Talts, the MVP in Estonia's pro league, showed the way for the home team with 20 points. Estonia opted to rest Siim Sander Vene and Rain Veideman, who were the team's top scorers in their 20-point opening win against Iceland.
Gilas, on the other hand, were led by Andray Blatche and Jayson Castro, who scored 16 and 13 points, respectively. The national pool played without the injured Ranidel de Ocampo and sat out Jimmy Alapag, Aldrech Ramos and Gary David in favor of Dondon Hontiveros, Jc Intal and Fil-tongan Moala Tautuaa.
Romeo squeezed in 10 points while Abueva had eight and three rebounds in a foul-plagued stint.
Gilas will wrap up its week-long training in Estonia when they face Iceland, which beat Netherlands, 67-65, earlier, on Saturday night.