Gilas Pilipinas will look to bounce back in the quarterfinal qualification game of the FIBA Asia Cup 2022 after they lost against New Zealand, 92-75, Sunday evening in Jakarta.

The Philippines finished group play as the third seed in Group D. They will face Japan in the knockout playoffs on Tuesday.

“It’s amazing that we had one turnover the whole game,” said Kiefer Ravena during the postgame press conference. “We weren’t able to capitalize on our almost-perfect, no turnover game.”

The Tall Blacks once again tried to take advantage of their size by repeatedly pounding the paint, getting offensive rebounds and scoring inside. New Zealand took a 14-point lead after the opening period.

Gilas refused to back down from the bigger New Zealand team. Kiefer teamed up with Kevin Quiambao to lead the team on a run that would keep them within striking distance in the second period. 

Kiefer scored seven unanswered points and Quiambao added a nifty floater to complete a 9-0 surge, getting Gilas to within six points, 38-32. A few plays later, the two connected on an and-one fastbreak to help the team inch closer, cutting the deficit down to just five points. 

Because of Ravena and Quiambao’s stellar play, Gilas was only down by eight heading into the half.

New Zealand’s outside shooting started to click after the break. They were able to build an 18-point lead off the strength of their outside shooting. Ravena tried to lead another run, but the Tall Blacks answered right back to keep Gilas at bay.

In the final period, Carl Tamayo and Bobby Ray Parks led the Philippines to one final push. A 3-pointer by Parks followed by a shot by Tamayo inside capped off a 9-2 run that got the team to within 12 in the final three minutes of the game. That was their final stand as New Zealand held off Gilas all the way to the final buzzer.

Ravena led all scorers in the game with 17 points. He also had six rebounds and three assists. Quiambao backed him up with 14 points and three assists. Tamayo finished with 14 points, scoring eight of his total in the fourth quarter alone. Parks chipped in with 10 points.

“We told the players at the dugout after the game, we still have a chance, one more against Japan to get to the top eight. And now we have to forget this ballgame and just focus our energies and our thoughts towards our next game,” said head coach Chot Reyes.