By Jonas Terrado
Thirdy Ravena provided a huge lift off the bench as Gilas Pilipinas pulled away late in the third quarter for a 100-70 win over Indonesia on Sunday to open its campaign in the 2021 FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers at the Mahaka Arena in Jakarta.
Gilas Pilipinas’ Thirdy Ravena goes for a layup while two Indonesian players look on during their 2021 FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers in Jakarta. (Photo from FIBA)
Ravena finished with 23 points, eight rebounds, three assists and two blocks in 23 minutes gave Gilas the energy on both ends whenever he is on the floor to give the Mark Dickel-mentored side an away victory in the Indonesian capital.
Roger Pogoy had 16 points and six rebounds, CJ Perez posted 11 points, seven rebounds, three assists and four steals while team captain Kiefer Ravena and Juan Gomez de Liano added 10 points apiece as Dickel won in his first game in charge.
Gilas also won on the defensive end, forcing Indonesia to 16 turnovers while making Kiefer Ravena and Perez accounted for eight of the team’s 15 steals.
The game went on as scheduled despite an overnight downpour left most streets in Jakarta flooded, leaving Gilas to call off its morning shootaround and spend the afternoon scouting its opponent.
Gilas weathered multiple comeback tries by Indonesia, the last when it pulled within four 55-51 on a basket by Arki Wisnu with 2:35 remaining in the third.
Gilas Pilipinas guard CJ Perez strips the ball from Indonesia’s Abraham Grahita during their 2021 FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers match in Jakarta. (Photo from FIBA)
But Thirdy Ravena accounted for five of Gilas’ 12 points the rest of the quarter to enter the fourth with a 67-53 lead.
Pogoy, Perez, Kiefer Ravena and De Liano built on that surge to lead by a high of 32 points during garbage time.
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Andakara Prastawa dropped 28 points but Indonesia, handled by former Gilas coach Rajko Toroman, absorbed its second straight loss in Group A, including Thursday’s 109-76 defeat to South Korea on the same floor.
Abraham Grahita, who was spared of a suspension after making a facial expression beside Toroman in a postgame press conference following the loss to South Korea, added 17.
The scores:
PHILIPPINES 100 — Ravena T. 23, Pogoy 16, Perez 11, Ravena K. 10, De Liano 10, Rosario 7, Chua 6, Erram 5, Ramos 5, Tratter 5, Nieto 2, Go 0.
INDONESIA 70 — Prastawa 28, Grahita 17, Wicaksono 6, Lakudu 5, Wisnu 4, Gemilang 4, Sitorus 2, Joni 0.
Quarters: 18-15; 37-28; 67-53; 100-70.
Source: Manila Bulletin
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