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| FIBA (file photo) |
By Dugout Philippines
KUALA LUMPUR--Batang Gilas began their FIBA Asia U18 3X3 Championship defense by splitting their two games while Batang Perlas had a rough night in Day 1 of the youth tournament on Friday.
The quartet of John Galinato, John Clemente, Kyle Tan, and Rhayyan Amsali found Qatar too tough to handle in their first match and fell, 15-21, but they bounced with a bang against a lethargic South Korean side via a 21-9 victory.
The distaff crew of Nike Rise alumna Kristine Cayabyab, sister Mary Ann, Cristel Dizon, and Jenilyn Gamboa, however, lost both of their matches, including one against Sri Lanka.
Despite a good start, the undersized girls team could not find a way to contain the taller Samarasinghe Nirma and fell, 13-15.
Batang Perlas also saw an early lead collapse to Japan and lost, 11-15, in their other scheduled fixture for the day.
Batang Gilas take on Japan at 2:10 p.m. and Vietnam at 3:20 p.m., while Batang Perlas battle Vietnam and Kyrgyzstan at 5:35 p.m. on Saturday.
Both in Group B of their respective divisions, the two RP Youth Teams must make the Top 4 so that they can advance to the playoffs on Sunday.
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