SEA Games: Gilas opens title-retention campaign with rout of Singapore

The first possession of Gilas Pilipinas' game against Singapore set the tone for how the rest of the night was going to play out: Chris Ross, in his first time playing for the national team, soundly rejected the shot of guard Wong Wei Long. The Philippines grabbed a comfortable 110-58 triumph over Singapore to open in style its bid in the 30th Southeast Asian Games on Wednesday . Buoyed by a vocal crowd at Mall of Asia Arena, the Philippines joined Vietnam at the top of Group A. Vietnam crushed Myanmar 131-52 in the first men's basketball game of these Games. Gilas returns to action on Friday night against Vietnam. "I love the way we started the game, when Chris Ross came out and blocked their star player, Long, right in the first possession," said Gilas Pilipinas coach Tim Cone . "That kind of sent a message that we're out here to play defense." The Philippines trailed briefly, after Kwek Leon (190-F-96) drilled a jumper with under nine minutes to go. But Stanley Pringle responded with a layup, then gave the Philippines the lead for good with a triple. It was all Gilas from there. Pringle scored 11 points in the first frame, and Matthew Wright added 9, all of them coming in a blistering stretch when he hit three consecutive triples. The Philippines took a 30-13 lead at the end of the first quarter and never looked back. "I think this team will get better," said Cone. "The more time we get together, the more games we play, I think we'll become a better team, and we'll be more coordinated in what we do, we'll be more coordinated defensively." Scoring slowed down in the second quarter, but Gilas still entered the break with a comfortable 48-28 advantage. They poured it on in the second half, with Vic Manuel simply overwhelming his defenders inside the paint. The Alaska forward finished with 14 points in his first game for the Philippines. Troy Rosario (201-F-92) had 15 points and 8 rebounds, while Pringle had 14 points, making all five of his field goals. Wright finished with 13, and June Mar Fajardo (210-C-89) added 12. Ross was the only Gilas player not to get on the board, but he registered 10 of their 38 assists. Cone praised Gilas' work on the defensive end, as the Philippines held Singapore to only 32.4% shooting from the field while making over 58% of their own shots. Long, Singapore's veteran guard, went 2-of-8 from the floor for 6 points. "What we're trying to demand from them is to play defense. I thought they did a good thing tonight, but I think they can still get better," said Cone. Leading Singapore was Kwek, who had 10 points on 4-of-10 shooting. But it was burly big man Raj Lavin who became a big crowd favorite and was cheered every time he touched the ball; he finished with 5 points.
Courtesy of: abs-cbn.com

Tags : LEON KWEK, SAFSA SKYBLADE, SINGAPORE BASKETBALL