Gilas Pilipinas open their FIBA Asia Cup 2025 bid with a loss to Chinese Taipei. They now shift their focus on New Zealand next in Group D play.
Gilas Pilipinas head coach Tim Cone did not hide his disappointment after his wards dropped an 87-95 decision against Chinese Taipei in their FIBA Asia Cup 2025 opener Wednesday, Aug. 6 (Manila time).
After staring at an 8-25 deficit in the opening salvo, Gilas played catch-up the entire way at the King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
“Well, obviously we didn’t play every good one. Disappointed in the way we played,” said Cone.
“We got behind early in the game and just played on our heels the whole way. It’s like we’re in panic mode for 40 minutes.”
[RELATED STORY: Gilas Pilipinas bow to Chinese Taipei in FIBA Asia Cup 2025 opener]
That did not mean that the Nationals threw in the towel after being down by 17 points as they staged a late uprising behind Kevin Quiambao.
When Quiambao — who sat out the first half — hit Chien-Hao Ma with a step back, in-your-face three-ball to get the Philippines to within six, 74-80, with 4:47 left, hope was palpable among the Filipino crowd inside the venue.
But it was not for long.
Justin Brownlee commits his fourth foul in the third quarter. | Photo (c) FIBA
Chinese Taipei quickly doused Gilas' comeback aspiration after eventual best player Ying-Chun Chen responded with five straight points.
It did not help the Philippine contingent's cause that naturalized Filipino Justin Brownlee got the boot with 4:29 remaining after incurring five fouls.
[WATCH: Gilas Pilipinas succumb to Chinese Taipei in sorry start | FIBA Asia Cup Highlights]
Chen was a problem for Gilas from start to finish as he wound up with 34 big points built on six triples to go with two rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Brandon Gilbeck also proved to be a headache in pick-and-roll plays as he scored four off of them to give the Taiwanese side a 92-83 edge with 43.8 ticks left.
The 7-foot naturalized player ended up with 16 points and nine rebounds for Chinese Taipei.
Robert Hinton debuted with 14 points, four rebounds and two steals, while Ting-Chien Lin shot three triples on his way to 14 points.
Cone took responsibility for the loss, saying he was simply outcoached.
“Obviously, they really outcoached us tonight. Disappointing performance on my part,” Cone said.
[RELATED STORY: Finally, Justin Brownlee brings Gilas magic to FIBA Asia Cup | GUTS AND GLORY]
Still, there was a silver lining for Gilas early in the continental meet.
With Brownlee saddled by foul trouble, Quiambao came in and delivered with 17 points, four rebounds and two assists in over 16 minutes of play.
Scottie Thompson was a bundle of energy on both ends of the floor, refusing to give up on loose balls and disrupting Chinese Taipei’s offense most of the time. He finished with 16 points, seven rebounds, five assist, and a steal.
Brownlee topscored for Gilas with 19 points, but could not whip up his magic in the clutch like he usually does as he exited instead.
He also had seven rebounds and two assists.
Dwight Ramos added 16 points, four rebounds and six assists, while AJ Edu came up with eight points and 12 rebounds.
Now Cone and the rest of the team have to regroup as they prepare for their next game against New Zealand Thursday, Aug. 7 (Manila time).
[RELATED STORY: Jordan Hunt, New Zealand all set for FIBA Asia Cup 2025]
Game time is at 11 p.m.
“Really hurt by the loss, but we’ll see what we can do. We have to bounce back from this and move forward. That’s the only thing we can do at this point,” Cone said.