Gilas Pilipinas exited the 2023 FIBA World Cup with a 96-75 victory against China on Saturday, September 2, at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
2021 NBA Sixth Man of the Year Jordan Clarkson scored 34 points and reigning Korean Basketball League champion Rhenz Abando added 14 points for the hosts to snag their first win in the tournament.
After ending the first half down by a single basket, 40-39, the Filipinos tied the score, 44-all, after Dwight Ramos buried a pair of free throws.
A three-point basket by Abando sparked an 11-point for the Philippines to take the lead, 59-48.
Before the end of the third quarter, China trailed behind by 23 points, 73-50, after Clarkson made four straight three-pointers in a 14-point scoring run of the Philippines.
Charities by Rui Zhao ended the bleeding and cut the deficit, 73-51, going into the fourth period but China could not steal the lead back in the final 10 minutes.
An alley-oop by Abando to AJ Edu allowed Gilas Pilipinas to take the biggest lead of the game, 85-60.
Kaier Li, more commonly known as Kyle Anderson, finished with 17 points and Zhenlin Zhang chipped in 13 points to pace China.
Both Philippines and China ended the tournament with a single win and four losses.
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Gilas Pilipinas overcomes China for first World Cup win