Gilas Pilipinas Youth secured the second place in Group A after overpowering Thailand, 91-62, in the FIBA U18 Asia Cup at the Veer Savarkar Indoor Stadium in Ahmedabad, India on Monday.

Luke Edward Atacador delivered 16 points and four rebounds for Gilas Youth, which finished the group stage with a 2-1 win-loss record.

With defending champion Australia also defeating Chinese Taipei, 110-58, the Philippines will face the third-place team from Group B in the playoff round on Thursday for a spot in the quarterfinals.

The Filipino dribblers are aiming for a top-four finish to secure a berth in the 2027 FIBA U19 World Cup in Pardubice, Czech Republic.

Against the Thais, the Philippines started slowly and fell behind by as many as 12 points, 8-20, after Lorenzo Ravazzini converted a putback with 4:36 left in the opening quarter.

The game remained tightly contested until Ethan Aguas buried a three-pointer with 4:28 left in the third quarter, sparking a 21-0 run that turned a 50-all deadlock into a 71-50 lead by the end of the period.

Gilas Youth never looked back from there.

George Aidan Green sank two free throws to give the Filipinos their biggest lead at 35 points, 87-52, to complete their dominant second-half performance.

The Philippines also imposed its size inside, grabbing 54 rebounds and scoring 38 points in the paint while benefiting from its deep rotation with 59 points coming off the bench and 19 more on fastbreaks.

Green and Elias Troy Gish added 15 points each, while Chog Moral chipped in 12.

Phurich Benjaariyakul led Thailand with 14 points, but his effort was not enough as the Thais finished the group stage winless in three games.