PH U16 team nips Kazakhstan in FIBA-Asia U16 Championship Taking a cue from their senior counterparts, the PH U16 youth squad kicked off its title bid in the FIBA-Asia Under 16 Championship in style with a thrilling 90-88 victory over Kazakhstan Thursday night at the Azadi Sport Complex in Tehran, Iran. Substitute Michael dela Cruz tallied a team-high 19 points but it was the duo of Richard Escoto of FEU-FERN and John Nieto of Ateneo High School who came up with decisive plays in the stretch that helped the Nationals hang tough and prime up for a clash with fellow Group D leader Chinese Taipei on Friday. Escoto banged in a double-double outing of 10 points and 19 rebounds, including a pair of game-clinching free throws, while Nieto swatted a potentially game-winning triple by Kazak ace Leonid Voronushkin just before the final buzzer sounded. Andres Paul Desiderio of the University of the Philippines added 16 points for the U16 boys, who are coached by former Ateneo Blue Eaglets mentor Jamike Jarin. Voronushkin led all scorers with 28 points but the Kazakhs still dropped to 0-2 following an 82-109 defeat dealt by the Taiwanese in the opener last Wednesday. The Philippines, Chinese Taipei and Kazakhstan will automatically move on to the second round with their respective records before taking on Group C teams India, Japan and Jordan. Despite the absence of four key players that includes Kobe Paras who is currently seeing action in the 2013 FIBA 3x3 U18 World Championships in Jakarta, Indonesia, the Nationals, who reigned supreme in the Seaba qualifiers, still had plenty to cheer about based on the post-game stat sheet. Although considered one of the smallest squads in the 10-day, 14-nation joust, the Philippines outrebounded Kazakhstan 49-48 and shot an impeccable 35-of-86 (41 percent) from the field built around 11 assists. The Nationals also shone defensively, blocking six shots while translating 26 Kazaks turnovers into 23 big points.
Posted on: Fri, 27 Sep 2013 12:16:17 +0000
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