Gilas Pilipinas Loses 69-66 to New Zealand in Asian Qualifiers

MANILA, Philippines - Gilas Pilipinas suffered a narrow 69-66 defeat to New Zealand in the second window of the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers on Thursday night at the packed Mall of Asia Arena, dropping the Philippines to a 2-1 record in Group A.

The Tall Blacks, who entered the game with an 0-2 mark after losses to Australia, secured their first win in the qualifying phase through a combination of defensive pressure and late-game resilience. New Zealand held a lead of up to nine points with under three minutes remaining, but Gilas mounted a furious 7-0 run to close the gap to 64-66 with 47 seconds left. The Philippines forced a miss on a contested three-pointer by Sam Mennenga, yet New Zealand capitalized on offensive rebounds, with Yanni Wetzell converting a putback to extend the lead to 68-64 with 13.8 seconds on the clock.

Dwight Ramos responded with a putback layup off a Calvin Oftana miss, trimming the deficit back to two points at 68-66 with 8.1 seconds to go. Reuben Te Rangi split his free throws at the line, setting the stage for Ramos' desperation heave from near half-court to force overtime. The shot rimmed out as time expired, sealing the outcome. Ramos led Gilas...