UNBEATEN. Gilas Pilipinas inches closer to winning a 14th straight SEA Games gold medal.
PSC-POC
Riding high on its 68-point mauling of Cambodia, Gilas Pilipinas drubs Singapore by 51 for a 3-0 record
MANILA, Philippines – Gilas Pilipinas authored another blowout win, this time clobbering Singapore to stay unbeaten in the Southeast Asian Games in Vietnam on Wednesday, May 18.
Riding high on its 68-point mauling of Cambodia a day prior, the Philippines steamrolled past Singapore, 88-37, at the Thanh Tri District Sporting Hall in Hanoi to pick up its third straight victory.
National team mainstay Roger Pogoy led the way with 19 points and 3 steals as the Filipinos got off to a blazing 15-1 start en route to the 51-point romp to inch closer to winning a 14th straight gold medal.
Unlike the past three SEA Games where squads are split into two groups, this edition follows a round-robin format, with the team with the best record bagging the gold.
The Philippines leads the pack with a 3-0 record, while host Vietnam and Indonesia are undefeated at 2-0.
Francis “LeBron” Lopez delivered anew with 18 points on a perfect 7-on-7 shooting after impressing in his Gilas Pilipinas debut with a team-high 17 points against Cambodia.
Lopez put on the finishing touches in the rout, pulling off a steal and slamming home a one-handed dunk for the final tally.
The Philippines also drew contributions from Matthew Wright and Jaydee Tungcab, who churned out 11 points apiece and combined for 5 steals.
June Mar Fajardo fell short of a double-double with 8 points and 11 rebounds in just 15 minutes of play.
No player scored in double figures for Singapore as Lavin Raj topscored with 8 points in the loss.
The Scores
Philippines 88 – Pogoy 19, Lopez 18, Wright 11, Tungcab 11, Fajardo 8, T. Ravena 5, K. Ravena 5, Tautuaa 5, Go 2, Navarro 2, Rosario 2, Montalbo 0.
Singapore 37 – Raj 8, Toh 7, Kwek 6, Low 5, Mah 3, Z. Lim 2, Crump 2, Sim 2, Liew 0, Goh 0, Y. Lim 0.
Quarters: 17-7, 43-17, 61-27, 27-10.
– Rappler.com
