Gilas reasserts dominance over Guam
MANILA, Philippines — Gilas Pilipinas turned out to be a brick wall and defended its home turf after blasting a gutsy Guam side, 95-71, in their FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifier clash Monday at the Blue Eagle Gym in Quezon City.
Gilas thus swept the first window of the qualifiers. Last Friday, the Nationals obliterated Guam at the latter's homecourt by 41 points, 87-46.
Three days later, Guam put up more fight but ultimately still fell short against the Philippines, energized by a rocking Filipino crowd.
Justin Brownlee powered the Nationals with 20 points to go with five rebounds and seven assists. Dwight Ramos backstopped with 19 points.
Gilas started off scathing hot, going up by 17, 30-13, in the first quarter.
The Filipino dribblers then turned things up a notch and rolled to a 27-point advantage, 47-20, in the second quarter after a deuce by Quentin Millora-Brown.
But Guam rallied back, unleashing a 24-6 run to slice the deficit to just nine, 44-53, in the third quarter led by Jericho Cruz’s offensive outburst.
However, Brownlee, Ramos, Kevin Quiambao and Chris Newsome conspired up to push Gilas’ lead to 17, 72-55, heading into the fourth.
While Cruz and Takumi Simon continued to carve the defense of the Philippines, they could not tow Guam back to within single digits.
A slam by Ramos put the exclamation point in the Nationals' victory, 88-71, with 2:16 remaining as Gilas breezed through to the finish line.
Despite the win, it is not all good news for the Philippines as Scottie Thompson exited the game at the 7:08 mark of the fourth quarter with an apparent left ankle injury. He did not return to the contest.
The second window of the qualifiers is set next year. Gilas will play in the Philippines anew as they take on New Zealand on February 26, 2026, and Australia on March 1, 2026.
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