Gilas Pilipinas falls short in securing victory against Italy, marking the conclusion of the Philippine team's 2023 FIBA World Cup journey with no wins achieved.
With a final score of 90-83, Gilas bows out of the World Cup title contention after a hard-fought match against the sharply-shooting Italy, held yesterday at Smart Araneta Coliseum.
NBA naturalized star Jordan Clarkson delivered a notable performance with 23 points, 7 rebounds, and 6 assists, while Dwight Ramos contributed 14 points.
RR Pogoy contributed nine points, and AJ Edu, Kiefer Ravena, and the fan-favorite Rhenz Abando all provided eight points each.
In the first quarter of the game, Gilas managed to secure a slight lead with a score of 23-20. However, the momentum shifted by the end of the first half, leading to a growing deficit as the European team dominated with a score of 48-39.
Italy's hot shooting from beyond the arc ensured their lead expanded to 73-60 at the end of the third quarter.
Although the Philippine team made an effort to close the gap in the final period, they fell short, and the final score remained seven points apart.
Simone Fontecchio, a teammate of Clarkson from Utah Jazz, led the Italian team with 18 points, while Giampaolo Ricci contributed 14 points.
With this game's outcome, Italy and the Dominican Republic secure advancement from Group A to the second round.
In the classification game, the Philippines will face the bottom two teams from Group B, potentially including either South Sudan or the regional powerhouse, China.
Following Gilas' World Cup loss, their last hope lies in other Asian teams also falling out in the first round, thus securing a spot in the 2023 Summer Olympics in Paris as the sole top-ranked asian basketball team.
