South Sudan weathered the Philippines’ third-quarter storm and held steadier down the stretch to preserve an 87-68 win in the FIBA World Cup classification match on Thursday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Gilas Pilipinas fought back from 21 points down in the second period by unloading eight unanswered points to open up the third period and even came to its closest at four on a nasty throw down by Kai Sotto off an alley-oop play with AJ Edu as the Filipinos trimmed the deficit to 56-60 with still 7:24 left in regulation.
But South Sudan gathered their wits together regained their composure on their way to securing the victory.
Following its win, South Sudan kept the Philippines winless and booted the Filipinos out of the race for an Olympic berth.
This came after Japan notched its second win in the tournament, which somehow out the team ahead of the other Asian bidders in securing a slot for the Paris Games next year.
