By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter

AUSTRALIA kept its unblemished record in group play of the FIBA Asian World Cup Qualifiers yesterday, defeating Gilas Pilipinas, 84-68, in their battle of unbeaten teams at the Margaret Court Arena in Melbourne.

Greatly challenged in the opening half, the Boomers proved themselves steady in the second fold of the match and out-sprinted Gilas to notch the victory, their third in as many games in Group B of the qualifiers, while sending the Philippines (2-1) to its first defeat in the tournament.

Australia got the scoring going early, outscoring the Philippines, 5-0, in the first two minutes of the opening quarter.

Gilas though would retaliate with five straight points after with Matthew Wright and Gabe Norwood conspiring.

The two teams went back and forth the rest of the way, making runs and counter-runs, finishing the frame leveled at 19-all.

In the second period it was Gilas’ turn to jump-start things, with June Mar Fajardo getting it going.

The Philippines held a five-point cushion, 30-25, at the 5:03 mark of the period.

But Australia did not stay down for long as it began to make its move back.

It retook the lead, 31-30, with 3:26 remaining on a basket by forward Mitchell Creek before outgunning the Philippines for the remainder of the half, 6-2, to build a 37-32 advantage by the halftime break.

Action picked up to start the third canto as both teams had their guns firing.

They fought to a 42-39 count with Australia on top with 7:48 on the clock.

Gilas’ offense, however, tapered off which the home team capitalized on as it built a 10-point gap, 54-44, at the 3:11 mark of the quarter.

Mr. Fajardo scored back-to-back baskets to pull the Philippines to within six points, 54-48.

It was the closest Gilas would come at that point as the Boomers pushed the gas as the frame wound up to extend their lead to 14 points, 63-49, heading into the final 10 minutes of the contest.

Sensing that the momentum was now on their side, the Boomers went for the kill to begin the fourth, going on a 7-0 run to establish their biggest lead of 21 points, 70-49, with over eight minutes remaining.

Gilas continued to fight amid the onslaught of Australia, coming within 14 points twice, 77-63 and 79-65.

The Boomers though would stay steady thereafter and went on to roll to the victory.

Cameron Gliddon led Australia with 16 points followed by Mr. Creek and naturalized player Kevin Lisch with 12 points apiece.

Mr. Fajardo, meanwhile, paced Gilas with 15 points with Mr. Wright adding nine.

Andray Blatche had a strong first half but fizzled out in the second to finish with eight points and seven rebounds.

Despite the loss, the Philippine still remains in second place in the standings in Group B behind Australia.

Japan and Chinese Taipei, which were to battle also yesterday, remained winless in the group.

In the Asian Qualifiers, 16 teams have been divided into four groups to determine the top seven teams joining World Cup host China as representatives of Asia/Oceania at the 32-field Basketball World Cup happening in August 2019.

Gilas Pilipinas next plays on Sunday against Japan at the Mall of Asia Arena at 7 p.m.

By Michael Angelo S. Murillo
Senior Reporter

WHILE the consecutive losses they absorbed in their last two games in the PBA Philippine Cup dealt a huge blow to their chances of securing a top two finish at the end of the elimination round, and notch the twice-to-beat incentive that goes with it in the next phase, still the Alaska Aces are not being down on themselves and are instead determined to finish on a high note.

To take on the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters in the 7 p.m. main game today of the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, the Aces (6-4) play their final game in the classification round with the hope of coming out on top and fortifying their place in the quarterfinals.

Currently tied at fourth place, Alaska is outside looking in for the top two but is already assured of a top six finish which would allow it to play in a best-of-three series in the next round.

As per tournament format, only the top eight teams at the end of the elimination round move on to the next phase with the top two enjoying a twice-to-beat edge over the two lowest teams while the middle teams battle in a best-of-three series — #3 vs. #6 and #4 vs. #5.

The Aces come in to their game against third-running Rain or Shine (5-3) off a loss to the league-leading San Miguel Beermen, 109-96, in an out-of-town game in Batangas City last Saturday.

It was their second in as many games after dropping their previous match against the NLEX Road Warriors.

Alaska gave everything they got against the Beermen but just could not complete the win as the latter showed the composure and step-up abilities, anchored by their starters, to withstand the Aces’ challenge.

JVee Casio paced Alaska with 20 points as Sonny Thoss added 15 and Vic Manuel and Kevin Racal had 13 points apiece.

The loss set the Aces back in their push for the top where they were at earlier in the tournament after racking up six consecutive victories midway into.

Despite the slippage, the Aces are not losing focus on their end goal and looking to regroup heading into the higher rounds and go as deep as possible in the conference.

“Our goal is to win the championship at the end of every conference and not to be number one at the end of the elimination round. It remains that way. We want to keep bettering ourselves and learn each time moving forward,” said Alaska coach Alex Compton after their game against San Miguel.

He went on to say that they will try to claim the win over Rain or Shine, which is on a three-game winning streak and off a near two-week break, to have something to build on come the quarterfinals wherever they made end up.

“They (E-Painters) have been playing well. They beat Magnolia in their last game. They are well-rested and will be ready. So we really have to prepare for them,” the Alaska coach said.

Meanwhile, in the first game at 4:30 p.m., San Miguel (7-2) goes for a spot in the top two when they take on also-rans Kia Picanto (1-9).

THE Philippines’ longest-reigning boxing world champion Donnie “Ahas” Nietes returns to the ring after a nearly a one-year break, pitting his skills on HBO Boxing After Dark’s Superfly 2 card this weekend.

Mr. Nietes, 35, will defend his International Boxing Federation flyweight title, which he won last time around, against Argentine challenger Juan Carlos Reveco in the Superfly 2 card at The Forum in Los Angeles, California, on Sunday, Feb. 25 (Manila time).

While the fight is not his first time to show his wares in mainland United States, having headlined some fights for ALA Boxing, it is, however, his debut with HBO, and is expected to introduce him to a wider audience that could well take an already successful professional career to another plane.

Considering what is at stake, Mr. Nietes (40-1-4) and his team said they are viewing the fight with much significance and coming in prepared against Mr. Reveco (39-3-0) to create the biggest splash in the event as possible.

In his last fight in April, Mr. Nietes hacked out a unanimous decision victory over Thai Komgrich Nantapech that allowed him joined the likes of Manny Pacquiao and Nonito Donaire, Jr. as multi-division Filipino world champions.

This is apart from having the distinction as the longest-reigning Filipino champion, a top dog as a light flyweight for more than a decade, beating the record of seven years previously held by legendary fighter Gabriel “Flash” Elorde.

BIGGEST MOMENT
For local fight analyst Nissi Icasiano, Mr. Nietes’ upcoming foray in the United States is undoubtedly a major one notwithstanding his outstanding track record in the boxing ring.

“If you’re going to look at his curriculum vitae in this sport, it is hard to deny Donnie Nietes’ place in boxing history. Although he is the longest-reigning Filipino boxing world champion for 10 years and 8 months and counting, he has yet to prove himself or raise his stock on the other side of the planet. Let’s take note that this is only his third fight on United States soil, but I will say that this is the biggest at the moment,” said Mr. Icasiano when asked by BusinessWorld for his thoughts on the Nietes fight.

“Nietes has long craved for that career-defining bout that will showcase him in front of the captious American boxing audience, and this fight against Juan Carlos Reveco will be a step in the right direction,” he added.

Mr. Icasiano said that Murcia, Negros Occidental native Nietes is very deserving of a spot in the Superfly series.

“Nietes will be on a card that is stacked with outstanding talents such as Srisaket Sur Rungvisai, Juan Francisco Estrada and Carlos Cuadras. Aside from that, the event will be broadcast by HBO. Nietes is about to get his own share of the spotlight in the United States,” he said.

Adding, “He has been competing in lower weight classes which has not been given prime-time attention by most television networks in the United States. However, there was a sudden surge of interest in the lower weight divisions after the success of ‘Super Fly’ in September 2017. The 35-year-old pugilist from Bacolod City, Negros Occidental is really in a great position being part of the HBO’s “Super Fly 2” card.”

As for Mr. Nietes’ opponent, Mr. Reveco, the analyst believes he is good challenge to the Filipino champ but may eventually fall to the latter.

“Reveco is a boxer with good hand speed and lateral movement. He is essentially a boxer, one who works behind a left jab-overhand right combination. Although he also has a championship experience as he held the WBA title before, Reveco has never shared a ring with a pugilist of Nietes’ caliber,” he said.

“Reveco is susceptible to the counter right as he tends to get lazy with the left jab as he moves in. With that being said, it is expected for Nietes to notice what I’ve mentioned and exploit it,” Mr. Icasiano added.

Also seeing action on Superfly 2 is Filipino-American Brian “The Hawaiian Punch” Viloria, who will be fighting for the vacant World Boxing Association flyweight world championship against Ukraine’s Artem Dalakian. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo