Gilas Pilipinas ousts Japan; Gets solo 3rd in group E

Gilas Pilipinas had their best performance so far in the 27th FIBA Asia Championship with a 90 - 71 win over the Japanese national basketball team. From the opening tip-off till the final buzzer, the players continued to play splendid defense against their Japanese counterparts.

Just over three minutes before the end of the game, coach Chot Reyes pulled Gary David off the bench probably to give him a chance to break his shooting slump. Gary had his first basket with a pass from Jimmy Alapag who had an open layup but still opted to pass it to help his struggling teammate get his confidence back. It was followed by a corner three-pointer just as the MOA Arena crowd started to chant 'Ga-ry! Ga-ry!'.

If the Philippines continues to play like this: no let-ups, splendid defense, and balance inside-out scoring, then I guess it's safe to say that this tournament is not over yet.

P.S. We still have 'El Granada' who can explode anytime.

#LabanPilipinas #PUSO

The scores: Douthit - 19, Chan - 16, De Ocampo - 9, Tenorio - 9, Castro - 7, Norwood - 7, Aguilar - 7, Alapag - 6, David - 5, Fonacier - 3, Pingris - 2, Fajardo - 0