Gilas off to hot start, routs Bahrain

GILAS Pilipinas got its gold medal bid off to a winning start after beating Bahrain 89-61 in the opening day of the 19th Asian Games on Tuesday at the Zijingang gymnasium inside Zhejiang University in Hangzhou, China.

Naturalized players Justin Brownlee and Ange Kouame presided over Gilas’ huge second quarter run that saw the Filipinos outscore the Bahrainis, 29-15 en route to a comfortable win and the early lead in Group C.

Ange Kouame (left) FILE PHOTO BY RIO DELUVIO 

Brownlee and Kouame combined for 24 points in the first half as Gilas took a 51-33 halftime lead and never looked back.

The Philippines will be shooting for a second straight win but is expected to fight through adversity against Southeast Asian rival Thailand on Thursday, September 28.

The Thais remain a threat for the Filipinos considering they’ll be bannered by veteran Thai-American Tyler Lamb, the team’s leader, along with 6-foot-4 forward Moses Morga, who helped Thailand clinch the bronze medal in the 2023 Southeast Asian Games last May.

With an even 1-1 record following a 3-1 victory over Hong Kong and the huge loss to the 2018 Asian Games bronze medalists, the Filipinas still remain in contention.

However, it’s not all in the hands of the Filipinas if they are to advance even if they beat world No. 51 Myanmar on Thursday at 7:30 p.m. at the Wenzhou Sports Center Stadium.

There are five groups of three teams each, and only the top team in each group will advance outright. The three other slots to the quarterfinals will go to the top three among the remaining teams.

It remains a must-win game against Myanmar. Then the Philippines, ranked No. 44, will have to wait for the final results of the other groups.

Against the South Koreans, the Filipinas scored first courtesy of Sarina Bolden in the eighth minute. But that proved to be the last as the South Koreans took control of the match the rest of the way.

The South Koreans equalized in the 12th minute then piled up the goals in the 44th, 52nd, 56th and 70th minutes en route to the runaway victory.