Team Pilipinas Downs Chinese-Taipei

TIANJIN – James Yap and Willie Miller combined for 11 three-point shots as Powerade-Team Pilipinas exacted revenge on haughty Chinese-Taipei, 77-70, Monday night to virtually snare a quarterfinal berth in the 25th FIBA Asia Men’s Championship.
Yap drained 6 of 11, including four in the pivotal third quarter, while Miller went 5-of-5 from rainbow territory, including the game’s biggest shot, to highlight the national team's spectacular 15 of 30 shooting from beyond the arc.
Miller beat the shot clock with 13 seconds remaining and the Philippines ahead, 72-70, to end Taipei’s hopes of repeating over the team it manhandled in front of its hometown crowd lin the William Jones Cup tournament last month.
Their third win in the preliminary round practically assured the Nationals of a spot in the final eight, but national coach Yeng Guiao wants to erase any doubts.
“Just to be sure, we have to beat Kuwait. Pero ambisyunin na natin ang Iran bukas lalo na kung magiging ganito kaganda ang shooting natin,” said Guiao.
Iran handed the Philippines its first loss in the Tokushima FIBA Asia Olympic qualifying tournament two years ago, and then clobbered the Nationals in the 2009 Jones Cup.
The RP team put behind it a horrendous shooting evening against South Korea Saturday.
In that game, the Nationals clanged 23 three-point shots as South Korea won, 69-56.
This time, the Nationals lit up the venue by burying 15 of 30 three-pointers in a deadly display of marksmanship.
Yap was awesome in the third quarter where he drilled four 3-pointers – three in succession – and completed one 3-point play as he unloaded 15 of his game-high 23 points in a scorching stretch that overwhelmed Taipei’s shooters and gave the RP team a 62-54 lead at the end of the third quarter.
So extensive was the scouting of the Taiwanese shooters, who scuttled the Nationals for 14 triples when they last met, that the RP defense, imposing an absolute clamp-down, allowed just one 3-point conversion in 15 attempts.
“We have a lot of respect for Taipei from what we saw in the Jones Cup, and we made a conscious effort to take away their three-point shot,” said Guiao. “That’s a key factor in the game.”
As brilliant as Yap was, however, it was Miller, a shooting guard masquerading as a playmaker here with Jayjay Helterbrand (8 points, 5 assists) slowed down by an old hamstring injury, who shone the brightest.
Not only did Miller go 5-of-5 from beyond the arc in contributing 17 points, he knocked down the biggest shot of the night after Taipei had come within 72-70 on free throws by guard Lee Hseuh-Lin with 1:36 left.
With the shot clock winding down, Miller let loose a cannon from slightly off top of the key to stop the advancing Taiwanese, with Gabe Norwood sealing their doom by towering over everybody else in hauling down a miss by forward Lin Chih-Chieh.
“Willie is one of our best shooters in the PBA,” Guiao told a Chinese reporter. “But he was just exceptional tonight.”
Asked by the same sportswriter to compare Miller, who was at the post-game media interview, with NBA legend Reggie Miller, Guiao grabbed the opportunity to poke fun at his former Red Bull player.
“Miller Time? For one, Reggie Miller is more good-looking. Willie is the ugly version of Reggie Miller,” Guiao said as Miller doubled over in laughter.
“But that shot really was the turning point. It was what won the game for us.”
In response to a question if the RP team’s outside shooting was a product of its extended practice sessions, Guiao said matter-of-factly: “Produkto yan ng mura at sigaw. Di naman mag-i-improve ang shooting mo overnight. They already had that in them when they got here. Kailangan lang ilabas.”
Pony-tailed center Tseng Wen-Ting led Chinese-Taipei with 21 points, sending Mick Pennisi to his fifth foul with 5:18 left in the game.
No other Taiwanese player had more than eight points, however, with the vaunted Tien Lei held down to eight points on 2-of-8 shooting.
Meanwhile, defending champion Iran, Jordan and South Korea kept their clean slates with rolling victories on Day Four of competition.
Iran mowed down Japan, 101-71; Jordan crushed Kazakhstan, 98-80; and South Korea thumped Kuwait, 78-58.
Games being played at press time are the ones between host China and United Arab Emirates, and Lebanon against Qatar.
Scores:
RP 77 – Yap 23, Miller 17, Thoss 8, Pennisi 8, Baguio 6, Helterbrand 6, Raymundo 5, Dillinger 3, Taulava 2, Norwood 2, Aguilar 0, Santos 0.
Taipei 70 – Tseng 21, Lee 8, Chang 8, Lin 7, Wu 6, Chang TH 6, Tien 6, Wang 4, Su 2, Yang 2, Chen 0, Wu CL 0.
Quarters: 16-21; 33-35; 62-54; 77-70.