Gilas Pilipinas falls to New Zealand in double overtime heartbreaker

MANILA, Philippines – Late miscues on top of an underwhelming performance by Justin Brownlee doomed Gilas Pilipinas in its stinging 106-102 double-overtime loss to New Zealand in the FIBA World Cup 2027 Asian Qualifiers at the Spark Arena in Auckland on Friday, July 3.

Shackled by the Tall Blacks’ suffocating defense, Brownlee scored just 5 points in nearly 36 minutes, then committed a costly unsportsmanlike foul that led to his exit as the Philippines absorbed its third straight defeat and fell to 2-3 in Group A.

The loss put to waste stellar performances by Juan Gomez de Liaño (23 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists) and Kevin Quiambao (23 points, 3 rebounds, and 2 assists), who hit timely buckets late in regulation and in the two extra periods, only to witness their side run out of gas.

“It would have been nice to be able to come down here and steal a game. That would have been special. The fact that we got as close as we did obviously is a huge disappointment,” said Philippines head coach Tim Cone. 

“Once you feel like it’s in your grasp and you let it slip away, it makes tough. We had chances in regulation and overtime to win that basketball game, and we just came up short.” – Rappler.com