CITY OF SAN FERNANDO, PAMPANGA — It lasted a little more than three minutes into the opening quarter, but it was a baptism of fire the Gilas Pilipinas Youth and first time coach LA Tenorio would probably not soon forget.
Using a 10-0 run to break out of a cold start against Vietnam, the Philippines took control after pulling ahead 17-15, ending the period with 9-0 run and then outscoring its opponent 32-13 in the second quarter on the way to a 99-52 blowout win in the FIBA U16 Asia Cup SEABA Qualifiers.
As a home crowd at the Bren Z. Guiao Convention Center watched in shock at the early development, the Vietnamese, banking on transition speed and a 1-2-1-1 zone press that forced Gilas lapses, surged ahead 13-4, pushing Tenorio into his first timeout at the 7:01 mark.
“Halatang bagito ba? Nag-panic agad!” Tenorio said laughing.
But it was for the best. Suing for time halted Vietnam’s momentum and gave the Philippines enough time to get its game in high gear.
Vietnam was still ahead 15-7 when Travis Pascual, Jolo Pascual, and Ethan Tan-Chi steered the Gilas Youth back from the quagmire, stamping its class and blowing the game open with a turned-up defense and aggressive attacks to the basket that overwhelmed the Vietnamese.
The carnage spilled over into the second half, with the Philippines posting its biggest lead at 47 points.
Travis Pascual and Prince Carino finished with 16 points each, Jolo Pascual had 14, and Justin Hallare and Jhello Lumague 10 apiece.
Tenorio said he is thankful his first game as a national youth team coach is over.
“Para akong varsity player uli,” said the former Ateneo Blue Eagle. “It was a learning process — for the boys and myself. We all will need to learn from our mistakes.”
Vietnam’s fiery start, Tenorio admitted, came as a surprise.
“We didn’t know anything about them, not much scouting report,” he said. “But we knew they have three very good players.”
The Gilas Youth takes on Thailand today, Sunday, Singapore on Monday, Indonesia on Wednesday and Malaysia on Thursday, all at 7 p.m.
May 30, Friday, is reserved for the classification round and the final, with the three best-placed teams advancing to the FIBA Asia Cup, representing Southeast Asia.
Traditionally, only the top two teams in the SEABA qualifiers gain slots in the continental showcase. However, SEABA benefitted on the strength of the Philippines’ strong showing under coach Josh Reyes in the previous edition of the Asia Cup in Qatar, as Gilas earned an extra slot for the region.
The U16 Asia Cup, which takes place in late August in Mongolia, kicked off the qualifying tournament Saturday with Indonesia routing Singapore 68-47, and Thailand downing Malaysia.