Gilas Pilipinas Youth dominate Malaysia, advance to U16 Asia Cup finals

Gilas Pilipinas Youth secured a perfect record in the FIBA U16 Asia Cup SEABA Qualifiers with a dominant 96-61 victory over Malaysia on Thursday at the Bren Z. Guiao Sports Complex in Pampanga.

The team, which has already qualified for the FIBA U16 Asia Cup this year, maintained an unblemished record of 5-0 and will face Indonesia for the championship title on Friday at 7 pm.

In the match against Malaysia, Gilas led by 28 points after the first quarter and extended their lead to 55-29 at halftime with a strong second quarter performance.

Travis Pascual and Jeremiah Antolin each scored 15 points, while Evaraigne Cruz added 14 points and Prince Carino recorded a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds.

Coach LA Tenorio expressed satisfaction with the team's victory but noted that they need to improve their teamwork for the final against Indonesia.