Philippines basketball put a scare into France in Olympics qualifying opener, but fall short

The Philippines' Andray Blache attempts a shot against France in their Olympic qualifying contest on tuesday night. Bullit Marquez / AP Photo / July 5, 2016

The Philippines national basketball team brought a tough challenge to France on Tuesday night in their Olympic basketball qualifying opener, but ultimately fell short 93-84 against a well-stocked side featuring NBA stars like Tony Parker and Boris Diaw.

The Gilas Pilipinas went into half-time down merely two, on the strength of strong three-point shooting and the active inside presence of naturalised player Andray Blatche. Despite flurries they could not mount a meaningful comeback in the second half after France pulled away in the third quarter.

The Philippines were aggressive early, with shotmakers like Terrence Romeo heaving audaciously as, playing on home court in Manila, they were undeterred by the prospect of a French side ranked fifth in the world by Fiba.

The Philippines are hosting one of three Olympic qualifying mini tournaments to determine the final three places in Rio. Six teams at each of the three venues are divided into three-team groups from which they will be seeded into the semi-final stages. Only the winner at each site will qualify for the Olympics.

The Philippines will get a chance to keep their hopes alive when they play New Zealand next. Canada, Turkey and Senegal lie on the other side of the bracket, with Canada defeating the Turkish team 77-69 in their opener on Tuesday night as well. The other two tournaments are in Belgrade, Serbia and Turin, Italy.

In their loss, the Philippines struggled to contain San Antonio Spurs guard Parker, who finished with 21 points.

They showed they could go long stretches with France shot-for-shot, however. They made 11-of-28 three-point attempts, good for a solid 39.3 percentage. Romeo had 19 points on 5-of-14 shooting. Stalwart point guard Jayson Castro had 14 points and three assists, and former NBA big man Blatche added 21 points and eight rebounds.

The French, though, also led by CSKA Moscow’s Nando de Colo scoring 27 points and Diaw’s nine-point, nine-rebound effort, went on a 14-4 run in the middle of the third quarter that the Filipinos simply never really recovered from.

Troy Rosario, Castro and Gabe Norwood hit shots in succession as the fourth quarter wound down to get the Philippines back within four, but Diaw and Kim Tillie overwhelmed them inside late.

The Gilas will try their hand again on Wendesday night at 5pm UAE time (9pm local Manila time) against the New Zealanders.

Tony Parker: We had to dig deep to beat the Philippines

French national basketball team bested Gilas Pilipinas 93-84 in their first game at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT), but it definitely wasn’t the demolition job that some expected before the game. Photo: CNN

The French national basketball team bested Gilas Pilipinas 93-84 in their first game at the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT), but it definitely wasn’t the demolition job that some expected before the game.

After the game, NBA guard Tony Parker only had good things to say about the Philippine team.

“I want to congratulate the Philippines. They had a great game, they were on fire in the first half,” said Parker. “You have to give a lot of credit to them, you can be proud about the team. They played a great game.”

“They made it tough on us, and we had to dig deep to get the W,” Parker added.

“They were pretty good, they were very aggressive,” said Parker on his counterparts. “They were very aggressive going to the basket and creating shots for their teammates.” – The National / CNN

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Philippines' President Duterte names and shames 5 Generals over alleged drug links - Evidence hold

Philippines’ Duterte names and shames five top cops over alleged drug links

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Tuesday publicly named five top police officials he said should be investigated for involvement in illegal drugs.

The president, who won elections in May by promising a ruthless war on crime, was making good on an earlier threat to publicly shame officers who were involved in or protecting the illegal drug trade.

“I order them relieved of their assignments and report to the [national police] director-general who would like to talk to them,” he said in a speech to the air force.

He also ordered the police commission to investigate the five, adding: “Don’t give me a song and dance. Find the truth.”

He said information on the alleged involvement of the five in drugs had undergone “so many validations” but he did not elaborate on the evidence against them.

National police spokesmen could not be contacted for comment.

One of the retired police generals named by Duterte told ABS-CBN television that he was innocent, protesting that he was being subjected to “trial by publicity”.

Duterte also reiterated his call for the return of the death penalty as well as his vow to pursue a campaign against illegal drugs.

Scores of suspected drug dealers have been shot dead by police since Duterte won the May 9 elections.

He has previously called on police to kill drug dealers and even urged the public and communist rebels to join in.

In his speech, Duterte stressed, “Many more will die ... It’s going to be a dirty fight, it’s going to be a bloody fight. I’m not apologising for it.”

The president, who has been linked to vigilante death squads that rights groups said killed more than a thousand people when he was mayor of the southern city of Davao, told security forces he would “assume full legal responsibility” for the campaign.

He also said the military should join the effort, adding he would need 3,000 more policemen to crack down on crime.

Duterte has made fighting crime the centrepiece of his administration, brushing aside human rights concerns over possible abuses.

Last weekend, Duterte’s newly appointed national police chief, Director-General Ronald Dela Rosa ordered police officers linked to narcotics trafficking to surrender by Sunday or be killed. - SCMP

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