Jordan Clarkson, Gilas Pilipinas Lose to Italy at 2023 FIBA World Cup

The Philippines was unable to punch its ticket to the second round of the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup, suffering a 90-83 defeat to Italy on Tuesday in its final game of the group stage.

Chot Reyes' squad wasn't just facing a must-win situation to preserve its dreams of making a deep run on home soil. A 12-point victory over Italy was required in order to climb into the second position in Group A.

Things were looking promising for the Philippines after a first quarter that saw it lead by three points. Then Italy outscored the Gilas Pilipinas 28-16 in the second quarter, and that effectively sealed their fate.

Every time the Philippines built some positive momentum, Italy responded with a few buckets that kept its opponent at arm's reach.

Utah Jazz star Jordan Clarkson had a team-high 23 points for the Gilas Pilipinas to go along with seven rebounds and six assists.

Despite Clarkson's best efforts, the Philippines simply had no answer for Italy's balanced offensive attack. Six players scored in double figures for the Azzurri, and they shot 17-of-40 from beyond the arc. They had five more made threes than they did field goals from inside the arc.

They made not have come efficiently (5-of-17 from the field), but Simone Fontecchio's 18 points paced Italy.

With Tuesday's outcome, the Philippines failed to register a win in the first round and finished last in Group A.

Italy, meanwhile, managed to secure second place in the group behind the Dominican Republic. It awaits the remaining games in the first round to find out who stands in its way to the quarterfinals.