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| Gilas Youth's bench came alive after a three-pointer was made. FIBA |
MANILA—A day after imploding in the second half against China, Gilas Pilipinas Youth played almost dominantly in the final 20 minutes to take down Kazakhstan, 66-42, for its first win in the FIBA U16 Asian Championship early Tuesday (Philippine Time) at the Al-Rayyan Indoor Hall in Doha.
Gilas Youth recovered from a lethargic second quarter that led to Kazakhstan taking a 30-25 halftime lead by outscoring them, 22-3, in the third quarter for a 47-33 lead entering the fourth.
Kazakhstan made one last push by starting the final period on a 9-2 run to cut the lead down to seven, 49-42, but Gilas Youth ended the game on a 17-0 run to completely blow the game wide open.
Kieffer Alas led Gilas Youth, which tied Malaysia for second place in Group D at 1-1, with 18 points, 10 rebounds, two assists, and three steals, while Joaquin Ludovice added 11 points, one assist, and three steals.
China demolished Malaysia, 95-33, in the first game to virtually secure the top seed for Group D plus outright entry to the quarterfinals.
Gilas Youth and Malaysia face off early Wednesday (Philippine Time) to find out which team finishes second in Group D.
Alisher Muratuly led Kazakhstan, which was eliminated from contention after dropping to 0-2, with 15 points, nine rebounds, two assists, three steals, and one block, but he committed seven of the team's 18 turnovers.
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