Gilas Pilipinas vs. Kazakhstan: Score and Twitter Reaction for 2014 Asian Games

Gilas Pilipinas were unable to secure the 11-point win needed to keep their medal hopes alive in the 2014 Asian Games, as they ran out 67-65 winners against Kazakhstan.

Two losses in the first two quarter-final matches ultimately proved to be the downfall of the Philippines side and although they rallied with a win against the Kazakhs, they just weren’t good enough on the day to get the job done.

Ahead of this one, Gilas coach Chot Reyes admitted his team’s prospects of progression were bleak, per Patricia Hizon of Sports5 (h/t Carlo Pamintuan of Yahoo Sports)

"

We need prayers.

I think we're out of it unless Kazakhstan beats Qatar tonight even if we beat them tomorrow (Sunday).

"

Luckily for coach Reyes, Qatar were defeated and the result meant that an 11-point win would give Gilas a chance of securing a semi-final berth. 

Marcus Douthit was drafted back into the side for this one after he was benched for Gilas’ previous clash, and he looked desperate to make an impact early on. The Philippines began the match on the front foot and raced into a 10-6 lead, with Douthit making an excellent early impression, as noted here by the Gilas Twitter account:

That strong start seemed to inspire Reyes’ side, and it wasn’t long before they had established the lead required to keep their faint hopes of qualification alive, Japeth Aguilar gobbling up a rebound and putting Gilas into a 12-point lead at 28-16.

At this juncture Gilas were playing with a purpose and professionalism. They kept possession well and the scoreboard ticking over. At the midpoint they had established a lead of 35-21 and if the first half was anything to go by, it was only going to be extended.

Miguel Angel Morenatti/Associated Press

Initially, that looked to be the case. Kazakhstan were unable to cope with the Philippines and at one point Gilas had put together an 18-point lead with the scoreline at 50-32. 

But problems crept into the Philippines defence towards the end of the third quarter, allowing the Kazakhs to score a quick-fire seven points, giving them only 13 to make up in the fourth quarter with the score at 52-39.

Chung Sung-Jun/Getty Images

Reyes’ team were unable to keep their cool, though, and errors were prevalent in their game throughout the last period. Nonetheless, with five minutes remaining on the clock, the Philippines had a lead of 14 points with the score at 65-51 and they should have seen the game out.

But they crumbled in the latter stages, allowing Kazakhstan to score eight unanswered points.

With the momentum sapped from their efforts, the Philippines resorted to speculative shots from distance, but that played into the hands of Kazakhstan, who were able to counter-attack and continue to reduce the margin. Eventually they ran out winners by just two points at 67-65.

Hizon encouraged the players to maintain their focus despite being out of the tournament:

Aaron Atayde was happy with the team's efforts:

Questions will be asked of Reyes’ credentials in the aftermath of this one and his handling of the team's star player Douthit throughout the tournament.

Not only were the Philippines poor in the two clashes that preceded this one, but they had the chance to post a win by the requisite margin here and give themselves a fighting chance of making it to the semi-finals. Gilas let it slip, though, with players and coach likely to reflect on a major opportunity missed to make a big impression at the 2014 Asiad.