Gilas Pilipinas Youth showed grit and composure in the clutch as they escaped Indonesia, 65-60, to secure their first win in the 2025 FIBA U16 Asia Cup on Monday. (September 1, 2025) at the MBank Arena in Mongolia.
After suffering a tough 106-82 defeat against Chinese Taipei in their opener, the young Filipinos responded with resilience.
Key plays from Luisito Pascual and Prince Cariño in the dying seconds made the difference, turning what seemed like another collapse into a breakthrough victory.
Cariño calmly knocked down two free throws before Pascual drained a crucial corner triple off a feed from Travis Pascual, widening Gilas’ narrow lead from 58-57 to 63-57 with just 35 seconds left.
Indonesia fought back, with Galih Putra Kharisma converting a three-point play to trim the deficit to three in the final 14.8 seconds.
Gilas nearly gave up control when Ethan Tan-Chi missed two free throws, but Cariño came to the rescue, grabbing the offensive rebound and scoring the putback to ice the game.
Tan-Chi led the Philippines with 12 points, five rebounds, and a steal, while Pascual contributed 11 points and five assists.
Cariño added key contributions on both ends, highlighted by his game-sealing rebound and basket.
With the win, Gilas improved their chances of advancing from the group stage, while also gaining a much-needed confidence boost after a rocky start.
The Philippines will look to build on this momentum when they return to action against their next assignment in the group phase.—Chelsea Victoriano, Contributor