Aussies maul Gilas Youth

Defending champion Australia dealt Gilas Pilipinas Youth its first loss, 107-69, on Saturday in the FIBA U19 Asia Cup at the Veer Savarkar Indoor Stadium in Ahmedabad, India.

Gilas entered the game on the heels of an 89-88 victory over Chinese Taipei in Group A play.

But the Filipino dribblers didn’t have that chance to turn the game into a close one as Yahya Basaran sparked a 19-4 run that turned a 26-24 lead into a 45-26 spread.

Two free throws from Isaac Riddle with 57 seconds left gave the defending champions their biggest lead at 42 points, 107-65, as Australia put the finishing touches to its dominant victory.

Australia bulldozed its way inside the paint for 54 points and hauled down 60 rebounds to remain undefeated in the tournament, which also serves as a qualifier for the 2027 FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup in Pardubice, Czech Republic.

Basaran led Australia with 17 points and eight rebounds, while John Aryang added 16 points.

Luke Edward Atacador and George Aidan Green led Gilas Youth with 12 points each in the losing effort.

The Philippines will look to bounce back against Thailand on Monday at 4 p.m. (Manila time) at the same venue.

It will be a rematch of the Southeast Asia Basketball Association U18 Championship final last June, with Gilas Youth hoping to return to its winning ways against the Thais.

With Australia looking poised to claim the top spot and an outright quarterfinal berth, the Philippines will aim to secure the best possible position heading into the playoffs.

The second- and third-placed teams from each group will face off in a qualification game for a spot in the quarterfinals.

Gilas Youth is targeting at least a semifinal finish to secure a berth in next year’s FIBA U19 Basketball World Cup.