Gilas Pilipinas’ young core gives hope despite 2OT defeat

Gilas Pilipinas’ Kevin Quiambao in action during a game vs New Zealand in the Fiba World Cup 2027 Asian Qualifiers in Auckland. –FIBA PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—Gilas Pilipinas may have suffered a heartbreaking double-overtime loss to New Zealand in the 2027 Fiba World Cup Asian Qualifiers, but one thing became clear: the future is bright.

In the Philippines’ 106-102 defeat to the Tall Blacks at Spark Arena on Friday, coach Tim Cone acknowledged the continued rise of Gilas’ young guns in Juan Gomez de Liaño, Kevin Quiambao and Carl Tamayo.

“KQ and Carl play in Korea, so they get a lot of improvements there. Juan is becoming one of the premier point guards in our league [PBA]. They have great futures ahead of them,” said Cone

“They’re evolving as players and we’re evolving as a team and that’s what you want. You don’t want to stand still, you want to move forward.”

All three young guns turned in strong performances against the Tall Blacks.

Gilas Pilipinas’ Juan Gomez de Liaño in action vs New Zealand in their Fiba World Cup Asian Qualifiers match in Auckland. –FIBA PHOTO

Converge’s Gomez de Liaño came off the bench and finished with 23 points, six rebounds and four assists, including a couple of timely triples down the stretch.

Quiambao also scored 23 points to go with three rebounds and two assists, while Tamayo made the most of his starting role with 17 points and four rebounds.

Cone was especially impressed with Quiambao and Tamayo, who have continued to develop since becoming part of the foundation of the new Gilas program.

Gilas Pilipinas’ Carl Tamayo in action during a game vs New Zealand in the Fiba World Cup 2027 Asian Qualifiers in Auckland. –FIBA PHOTO

“When we first got these guys on the team, they were 21 and they have evolved since, along with the team and that was the vision,” he said.

“At one point they’d be the main guys and it may be coming faster than we thought but they are certainly stepping up and playing at a much higher level. We’re real proud of those young guys for continuing to improve.”

The trio stepped up at the right time as Justin Brownlee was limited to just five points for the Philippines.

Next up for Gilas is powerhouse Australia on Monday at 6:30 p.m. (Philippine time).