By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
The Gilas Pilipinas Girls pulled off another lopsided outing in the FIBA Women’s Under-18 Asia Cup Division B SEABA Qualifiers tournament after demolishing Indonesia, 73-37, on May 26, 2024, at the Ratchaburi Gymnasium in Thailand.
Following a 32-point beatdown of Malaysia that steered them to their second straight victory, the young Gilas Girls showed their character and poise despite a strenuous playing schedule at the FIBA level.
Alicia Villanueva paid off the trust of the Gilas coaching staff after spearheading their attack with a double-double performance of 13 points and 10 rebounds.
After Gabby Ramos’ huge performance against Malaysia, it was Villanueva’s turn to flaunt her skills against the Indonesian interior defense.
From her post moves down the block to her sweet mid-ranged jump shots, Villanueva was almost a walking bucket for Gilas in just 19 minutes of action.
Gilas didn’t start well after only leading by three points, 14-11, in the opening frame but after Villanueva and the girls shrugged off their jitters, the game suddenly became lopsided in favor of the Filipinas.
Tiffany Reyes then picked up where Villanueva left off and starred in the second half for Gilas as she ended up with nine markers.
Reyes was sent in to maintain Gilas’ double-digit lead in the second half. After they already established the momentum, the whole pack then went crazy from the field to officially leave the Indonesians behind with still six minutes left in the fourth quarter.
What was the most impressive part during Gilas’ win over Indonesia was there balanced scoring effort. 11 players all entered the offensive column for the national team, including their reserves.
With the win, the Gilas Girls just booked a ticket to the next stage of the prestigious tournament and will be flying to Shenzen, China, next month.
