Gilas Boys finish 4th in FIBA Asia U16; Kiefer Alas named to All-Star Five

Gilas Pilipinas Boys finished in fourth place in the FIBA U16 Asian Championship after an 87-59 defeat to China in the third place game held Sunday evening in Doha, Qatar.

Gilas Boys, which qualified for the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup by reaching the semifinal round of the tournament, finished only behind powerhouses such as Australia, New Zealand, and China.

Read more | Gilas Boys qualify for FIBA U17 World Cup after QF win vs Japan

Joaquin Ludovice led the Philippines in the game with 15 points while Kiefer Alas finished with 13.

But they were unable to get payback against China, the same opponent that dealt them an 84-67 loss during their opening day Group D game last week.

Not with Chinese star Zhang Boyuan, the tournament's second-leading scorer with an average of 20.5 points, erupting for 34 points alongside seven rebounds and one block. Huan Sinan and Wang Ziheng chimed in with 14 and 12 markers apiece for China, which clinched third place to finish on the podium.

In the tournament finals, Australia clinched a third consecutive title after a 79-76 escape against New Zealand.

Kiefer Alas makes All-Star Five

Alas was recognized for his terrific run in the U16 tilt by being named to the tournament's All-Star Five.

Kiefer, the son of  finished with averages of 15.4 points per game, which ranked him 9th in the competition, and 8.6 rebounds (5th). The second-generation rising star led the team in scoring in four of their seven games, including a 29-point performance against Japan in their quarterfinal contest.

Alas joined tournament MVP Oscar Goodman of New Zealand, his teammate Lachlan Crate, Australia's Henry Sewell, and China's Zhang in the All-Star Five.

Goodman averaged 14.2 points and 8.3 rebounds for the Kiwis.

Gilas Pilipinas Boys results:

Group D: China def. Philippines, 84-67
Group D: Philippines def. Kazakhstan, 66-42
Group D: Philippines def. Malaysia, 75-52

Playoff: Philippines def. Korea, 95-71

Quarterfinals: Philippines def. Japan, 64-59
Semifinals: Australia def. Philippines, 92-36
Third place game: China def. Philippines, 87-59

—Bea Micaller/JMB, GMA Integrated News