Clarkson scores 28, Gilas gives Dominican Republic tough fight in FIBA World Cup

Jordan Clarkson and Gilas Pilipinas gave Karl-Anthony Towns and the Dominican Republic just about all they could handle before falling short in the endgame, 87-81, in Group A of the FIBA Basketball World Cup on Friday at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan.

In front of a record-breaking home crowd of 38,115, the Philippine team battled hard behind Clarkson and his 28 points before the NBA star fouled out with 3:32 remaining in the game, allowing the visitors to outlast the gutsy hometown crew in the end.

Towns, the Minnesota Timberwolves star, shone brightest as he finished with 26 points while also grabbing 10 rebounds in a duel against the Philippines' Clarkson.

With neither team gaining any significant edge during the first three quarters, the result still hung in the balance heading into the final canto of the contest.

However, the tides started to shift in Los Quisqueyanos’ favor when Gilas’ star guard accumulated two quick fouls at the 3:50 mark and the 3:32 mark to foul out of the contest.

But even without the Utah Jazz player out of the equation, Gilas clawed back to as close as two, 81-79, inside the last two minutes thanks to the play of June Mar Fajardo and AJ Edu in the frontcourt.

Dominican Republic, though, took advantage of their size and speed to will their way into the paint for easy points. A huge and-one finish from Victor Liz, who then had to be replaced due to injury following a collision with Fajardo, and a late layup from Jean Montero proved to be the knockout punch down the stretch.

Clarkson scored 18 of his points in the first half - including 14 in a red-hot second period. Aside from his scoring, he finished the game with seven rebounds and seven assists, and two steals.

He did, however, shoot 38-percent from the field and turned the ball over eight times.

Fajardo backed Clarkson up with 16 points on a perfect 5-for-5 shooting clip from the field and 6-for-8 shooting from the free throw line.

Dwight Ramos followed suit with 13 points, including two timely three-pointers as part of an 8-1 run that kept Gilas in the game in the third.

Veteran guard Liz had an all-around performance for Dominican Republic, chalking up 18 markers, six rebounds, and four steals. Andres Feliz also chipped in with 12 points.

With the win, Dominican Republic joined Italy on top of the Group A standings with identical 1-0 records following the results of opening day. Gilas, meanwhile, dropped alongside Angola at 0-1.

Dominican Republic will look to cement its place in the next stage when it comes up against Italy on Sunday at 4 p.m. at the Araneta Coliseum.

Gilas will look to bounce back against Angola at 8 p.m. in the same venue.

Read more: FIBA World Cup Preview: A Serbian correspondent breaks down Gilas Pilipinas vs Angola

The scores:

Dominican Republic 87 - Towns 26, Liz 18, Feliz 12, Delgado 6, Montero 6, Vargas 5, Peña 5, Figueroa 5, Mendoza 2, Quiñones 2, Solano 0.

Philippines 81 - Clarkson 28, Fajardo 16, Ramos 13, Edu 7, Pogoy 6, Thompson 5, Abando 2, Aguilar 2, Ravena 2, Malonzo 0, Sotto 0.

Quarters: 22-18, 42-42, 64-62, 87-81

—Juris Salvanera/JMB, GMA Integrated News