By REYNALD MAGALLON
Tiffany Reyes had a 15th birthday to remember.
The 6-foot-1 forward celebrated her special occasion in style, draining the game-winning jumper at the buzzer to lift the Gilas Pilipinas girls team to a breakthrough 77-75 win over South Korea in the FIBA U16 Women’s Asia Cup at the Arena Seramban in Malaysia.
Reyes actually took over for the Nationals in the final frame scoring eight of his 16 points – none bigger than the go-ahead basket that saved the Filipinas from another heartbreak after squandering an earlier 10-point fourth quarter lead.
With the game tied at 75-all with 7.7 seconds left, the daughter of former PBA player Jay-R Reyes even showed composure beyond her years, faking off her defender before going for the free-throw line jumper.
Reyes’ heroics not only preserved a stellar showing from Ella Smith, who had 21 points, seven rebounds and four assists, but more importantly, sent the Nationals to knockout rounds.
Gilas Girls, with the win, has now advanced to the qualification to the semifinals after finishing third in the Group A standings with a 1-2 record.
The Nationals will face the second placer in the Group B which featured Japan, China, New Zealand and Syria.
Ruiza Olmos added 12 points and seven rebounds while Zaira Vinluan had seven and Makena Ramos with six points and eight rebounds.
South Korea, which led 53-46 in the third, was paced by Seun Lim with 31 points and eight rebounds while Damhee Kim had 26 points and 12 rebounds.
