By ADRIAN STEWART CO

Gilas Pilipinas leaned on a huge third quarter breakaway to defeat Hong Kong, 94-64, in the first window of the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers at the Tsuen Wan Sports Centre in Hong Kong on Thursday night, February 22.

Holding to a slim 41-37 lead at the half, Gilas Pilipinas started the third quarter strong behind conversions from Justin Brownlee and Kai Sotto for a 53-41 lead on a three-point play by Calvin Oftana.

Gilas Pilipinas continued their run with five straight points from Dwight Ramos and three-point connections from Chris Newsome and Jamie Malonzo for a 71-46 advantage heading into the fourth period.

Hong Kong unloaded eight straight points to start the final quarter to cut the deficit to 19 points, but Quiambao heated up for Gilas Pilipinas for their biggest lead of 94-64 late in the game.

Brownlee marked his return from a three-month suspension by finishing with 16 points, including two three-point conversions, to go with seven rebounds, seven assists and three steals to lead the way for Gilas Pilipinas.

Quiambao added 15 markers, mostly coming in the final quarter, Sotto posted a double-double of 13 points and 15 rebounds to go with two blocks, while Malonzo ended with 11 markers.

Gilas Pilipinas cruised to a 9-0 start behind connections from Sotto, Ramos, Oftana, and Earl Scottie Thompson, but Hong Kong got their three-point shots to fall to cut the deficit to 12-15.

The Philippine squad managed to pull away at 23-15 on back-to-back triples from Malonzo and Jaymar Perez, and an inside hit from Quiambao, but Hong Kong countered with a strong second quarter run to take a 30-29 lead.

Gilas Pilipinas quickly regained a 31-30 edge on a Quiambao putback before Brownlee and Sotto connived for a strong run to close the second quarter for a 41-37 advantage at the half.

Shiu Wah Leung top-scored for Hong Kong with 15 points, Oliver Xu added 13 markers, while Duncan Reid and Sui Hung Yeung each ended up with 12 markers in the lopsided loss./ASC, WDJ

PHILIPPINES 94 — Brownlee 16, Quiambao 15, Sotto 13, Malonzo 11, Ramos 9, Newsome 7, Aguilar 6, Thompson 5, Perez 5, Oftana 5, Tamayo 2.

HONG KONG 64 — Shiu 15, Xu 13, Reid 12, Sui 12, Yang 5, Lung 4, Chi 3, Hiu 0, Kwan 0, Tin 0, H. Tsz 0, K. Tsz 0.

Quarterscores: 23-15, 41-37, 71-46, 94-64.