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| Jerrick Ahanmisi picked the most crucial moment in Gilas Pilipinas' campaign to explode. SBP |
MANILA--Jerrick Ahanmisi carried the fight for Gilas Pilipinas 3x3 Men as they knocked out Chinese Taipei from FIBA 3x3 Asia Cup contention with a 21-13 win on Saturday night in Singapore.
Nearly two hours after his team failed to finish the giant slaying job against Mongolia, Ahanmisi nearly outscored the entire Taiwanese squad by himself as Gilas booked its place in the quarterfinals on Sunday.
Ahanmisi, the reigning PBA All-Star Weekend 3-Point Shootout champion, dropped four long bombs, good for two points in FIBA 3x3 rules, to highlight his 11-point performance against Chinese Taipei.
He capped his impressive offense with a follow-up that gave Gilas the match point with 2:01 to spare.
Chris Koon added five markers, while Ralph Cu put up three, and Sean Alter had two.
Chen Chia-Chuan and Chang Chun-Sheng each had five points, while Fu Yu added three for Chinese Taipei, which bowed out of the competition after going winless in Pool A.
The Gilas boys will play Group C top seed South Korea in the knockout phase.
The Koreans stunned Asian 3x3 powerhouse Japan, 20-15, before escaping host country Singapore, 21-19, to sweep their group.
Meanwhile, Gilas' women's team settled for the second seed in Pool D as Australia outmuscled them for a 21-10 win.
Lara McSpadden led the way for the bigger Opals with eight points, nearly matching Gilas' total points, and six rebounds, more than her opponents' entire rebounding output of five.
Emma Clarke also outrebounded Gilas by herself with six boards of her own alongside seven markers, while Kristy Wallace and Amy Atwell each put up three points.
Australia will play neighboring team New Zealand in the quarterfinals, both in the men's and women's divisions.
Afril Bernardino and Kacey Dela Rosa each had four points, while Cheska Apag added two for Gilas, which will now try its luck against Mongolia's women's team in the quarterfinals.
The scores:
Philippines (21) - Ahanmisi 11, Koon 5, Cu 3, Alter 2
Chinese Taipei (13) - Chang 5, C. Chen 5, Yu 3, T. Chen 0
