By REYNALD MAGALLON
Gilas Pilipinas battles to stay in the hunt for a World Cup spot when it takes on Bahrain in the qualification to the quarterfinals in the FIBA U16 Asia Cup at the Mbank Arena in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia on Thursday, Sept. 4.
Tip-off of the clash is at 11:30 p.m. with the Nationals looking to put a rough group stage showing behind as it tries to vie for one of the remaining four spots in the Magic 8.
Gilas Boys finished Group B standings at the third spot with a 1-2 record, earning them the right to challenge Bahrain which ended up second in its group with a 2-1 slate.
Although history has been on Gilas side heading into the contest – defeating Bahrain in their only two meetings in the past – the young Bahraini squad cannot be taken lightly especially after it defeated Lebanon, 70-68 and India, 111-80.
At the forefront of the impressive tournament so far for Bahrain is the duo of Hassan Oshobuge Abdulkadir and Somto Patrick Onoduenyi who have been leading the team in scoring.
Abdulkadir is leading Bahrain with 22.5 points per game while Onoduenyi isn’t too far behind with a 21.5 average.
With their scoring prowess, the two pose a huge threat to a Gilas Boys team which has been struggling with their defense all-tournament.
The Filipinos only win came at the expense of fellow SEABA qualifier Indonesia, 65-60, while giving away over 80 points in the losses to New Zealand, 54-85 and Chinese Taipei, 82-106.
On the offensive side, Prince Carino is the only double-digit scorer for Gilas with 12.4 ppg followed by Ethan Tan Chi and Jhello Lumaguib with 8.0 ppg.
They will need more from guys like SEABA qualifier MVP Gab Delos Reyes, Andwele Cabanero and Travis Pascual if they wish to reach the quarterfinals.
A win for Gilas against Bahrain would pit the Nationals against the undefeated China for the assured Top 4 finish and a spot in the U17 World Cup next year.
