Gilas Pilipinas boys outscore Indonesia in a close game

GILAS Pilipinas Youth hurdled its toughest test in the FIBA U16 Asia Cup SEABA Qualifiers against Indonesia and kept its spotless record with a 77-68 victory on Wednesday in Pampanga.

After three straight blowout wins, the Filipino youngsters encountered stiff resistance from the Indonesians and needed a clutch 12-7 closing barrage to put the game to bed in front of a packed Bren Z. Guiao Convention Center crowd.

Prince Carino banged in 15 points while Travis Pascual and Jolo Pascual added 13, 12, respectively, and Carl delos Reyes produced a 10-11 double-double to spark the hosts past the Indonesians (3-1) in a preview of their potential title showdown.

The wards of coach LA Tenorio were slated to wrap up their elims and target for a perfect 5-0 last night against Malaysia (2-2) before fighting for the gold tonight.

For the Ginebra guard, this close match should keep his wards on their toes after breezing through one-sided matchups against Vietnam, Thailand and Singapore early on.

“We didn’t come here to blow out opponents,” said Mr. Tenorio. “We came here to win, so we’re taking this. It’s good that this was a close game.” — Olmin Leyba