Metro Manila, Philippines – Gilas Pilipinas absorbed a lopsided 93-66 loss to Australia in the second window of the 2027 FIBA World Cup Asian qualifiers on Sunday, March 1, at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City.
Following a quiet performance in their previous game against New Zealand, Justin Brownlee showed the way for Gilas with 20 points, eight rebounds, and seven assists.
Gilas surprisingly stayed within striking distance at the halftime break, trailing by only five points.
Elijah Pepper went berserk with his hot shooting as Australia unleashed a 30-point outburst in the third quarter.
A barrage of treys — a total of 15 in the match — by Australia put the nail in the coffin in the second half for the struggling Gilas side, which could not grab rebounds and committed a handful of turnovers.
Quentin Millora-Brown was the other bright spot for Gilas on offense as he finished with 11 points and five rebounds.
Pepper had 28 markers to go along with seven boards for Australia.
Australia kept their record perfect at 4-0 in Group A, while Gilas dropped to third place with a 2-2 slate.
The Philippines still advanced to the second round of the FIBA World Cup Asian qualifiers after New Zealand demolished Guam in their encounter.
