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| PH men beat Lebanese, stay in contention in Continental Cup Posted: 18 Jun 2021 03:48 AM PDT THE Philippines' Jude Garcia and Jaron Requinton swept Lebanon's Paul Bou Aki and Joe El Azzi, 21-16, 21-17, in the golden match to keep the country's hopes alive in the Asian Volleyball Confederation Continental Cup in Nakhon Pathom, Thailand, on Friday, June 18, 2021. The Philippines and Lebanon split their first confrontation, thus sending the duel to a golden match or tie breaker. Requinton subbed a cramping Anthony Arbasto and was fresh against the Lebanese, who are seeded one rung behind the Filipinos at No. 5 in these semifinals where the winner advances to the finals on June 24 in the same venue. "The Lebanese just wouldn't simply sink in the sand," the 20-year-old Requinton said. "It was tough throughout the golden match-it was a fight for pride-but we showed Pinoy heart." Lebanon drew first blood with Chedid and El Azzi fashioning out a 21-19, 21-19 win over Requinton and James Buytrago. But a cool and calculated tandem of Garcia and Arbasto did not let their guard down and rallied from a four-point deficit in the deciding set to beat Akl and Salba Chafix, 16-21, 21-18, 18-16, to force the golden match. The Filipinos, backed by the Philippine Sports Commission and Philippine National Volleyball Federation (PNVF) partner Rebisco, will have their hands full when they face Australia later in the afternoon. Japan eliminated Kazakhstan also on Friday- 21-15, 23-25, 15-10 and 19-21, 21-19, 18-16-to also stay in contention for an Olympic slot at home. The winner of the Philippines-Australia match will face Japan at 10 a.m. on Saturday. The winner here will qualify for the finals where defending champion Qatar and zonal titlists China (east), Indonesia (Southeast Asia), Iran (central), New Zealand (Oceania) and Oman (west) and host Thailand lie in waiting. Only the winner of the finals will earn a ticket to Tokyo. (PR)  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
| Gilas takes Indonesia tonight; eyes 2nd win in the final window Posted: 17 Jun 2021 04:42 AM PDT AFTER a stunning 81-78 performance last Wednesday, June 16, by the young Gilas Pilipinas against powerhouse South Korea, the host-squad will face Indonesia Thursday night, June 17, for the second time in the ongoing 2021 FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers at Clark, Pampanga. It was recalled that Gilas, which was a team composed of professional and amateur players, defeated the Indonesians last February 2020 in Jakarta during the tournament's first window, with a 30-point margin, 100-70. Tonight, Filipino basketball fans are expecting Tab Baldwin's Gilas squad to duplicate the victory they had last year led by Thirdy Ravena, who scored 23 points alongside 8 rebounds, and pair of blocks. Leading the Filipino side when they face the Indonesians at 6 p.m. are naturalized center Angelo Kouame, Kai Sotto, Isaac Go, Justine Baltazar, Carl Tamayo, William Navarro, Dwight Ramos, RJ Abarrientos, and Bacolod City-pride SJ Belangel. Also suiting up for this game are veteran guard Jordan Heading, Geo Chiu, and 17-year-old and 6'5 forward Lebron Lopez. Meanwhile, the Rajko Toroman-mentored Indonesians are expected to rely on their naturalized player and former PBA import Lester Prosper. At press time, Indonesia is playing against South Korea, which dominated them during their initial face-off in the latter's turf, 109-76. Ending the 8-year losing streak vs South Korea The Gilas Pilipinas last won over South Korea in the semifinals of the 2013 FIBA Asia Championship, 86-79, played before the thousands home crowd at the MOA Arena. It was only on Wednesday, June 16, when the young Gilas squad pulled a huge victory over the Koreans in the heroic 3-point buzzer-beater of 6-foot playmaker Belangel. The win secured the Filipinos a spot in the 2021 FIBA Asia Cup in Indonesia. In a message by Mark "Tata" Belangel, his nephew [SJ] said that he took the shot but didn't expect it to go in although they do practice it during training. During the post-game interview, Baldwin said that the initial play was for Tamayo to score a quick 2 points inside the paint on a direct pass from Ramos. However, the Koreans switched defense and closed the mid-section. Ramos found Belangel who made his own play and made history. For SJ's father Sammy, he is humbled but at the same time proud for his son who was able to contribute to the team especially in crucial minutes of the game. Gilas will face South Korea again on Sunday, June 20.  This posting includes an audio/video/photo media file: Download Now |
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