Gilas teens return to international play with a bang

MANILA, Philippines — The new crop of Gilas Pilipinas youth introduced itself in flying colors, drubbing Kuwait with an emphatic 82-45 win in the FIBA U16 Asian Championship yesterday in Doha, Qatar.

Filipino-Canadian big man Zain Mahmood uncorked 16 points and five rebounds while co-captain Jared Bahay scattered 12 markers, eight rebounds, six assists and three steals in Gilas’ 37-point win.

Fil-American sensation Caelum Harris struggled for just two points but Jacob Bayla and Kristian Porter stepped up with 10 each as Gilas tied Japan on top of Pool C with a 1-0 card.

Gilas was to play Japan, which clobbered Kuwait, 98-33, at 8:45 p.m. (Manila time) last night, needing a big win to top Pool C and clinch an outright quarterfinals berth.

A loss by the Nationals would drag them to a qualification phase among second and third-seeded squads in order to advance.

With Bahay quarterbacking their offense, the Filipino teens raced to a 25-9 start and never looked back for a rousing return to international action amid the pandemic.

The Nationals led by as many as 38 points built on a 51-percent accuracy plus 48 rebounds, 23 assists and 33 points in the paint. They also had 17 steals, resulting in 28 turnover points from Kuwait’s 29 errors.

Adel Alsaied paced winless Kuwait (0-2) with 16 points and nine boards.

The U16 Asian Championship is Gilas youth’s first tourney in three years, hoping to replicate the success laced by two World Cup appearances of the previous batch led by now NBA Draft hopeful Kai Sotto.

The tourney is a qualifier to the FIBA U17 World Cup in Spain next month.