FOSHAN (China) - Angola needed five extra minutes to beat Philippines 84-81 in the last game of Group D of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 in Foshan.

It was the Angolans' first win in the tournament who now move to the Classification Round in Beijing on the back of a 1-2 mark, while Philippines conceded their third defeat in as many games.

Six Angola players scored in double digits, including Valdelicio Joaquim who finished with a team-high 20 points. Jacques Conceicao, Carlos Morais and Reggie Moore combined for 33 points and Yanick Moreira added a double-double 12 points and 15 rebounds.

Meanwhile, Andray Blatche came up with yet another double-double performance finishing with a game-high 23 points and added 12 rebounds to his account, and Jaymar Perez hit 3-for-8 from beyond the arc, finishing with 17 points in the losing cause.

Turning Point: Trailing 76-75, Angola head coach Will Voigt called a timeout, drawing a three-point play by Reggie Moore that put the Angolans in front 78-76, and the former African champions never trailed again, sealing a much-awaited win. 

TCL Player of the Game: Valdelicio Joaquim has probably played the best game of his national team career. The 2.08m (6ft 10in) center was impactful at both ends of the floor, making 6-for-8 of his field-goals, he cleared the boards with seven rebounds and protected the Angolan rim with a game-best three blocks in 31 minutes of action.

Stats Don't Lie: Fearing for their third straight defeat, the Angolans stepped up their aggressive defense, to finish with six block shots. But, it was Philippines' poor three point shooting that caused them the most damages. The attempted a staggering 46 three-points attempts, making just 10 of them for 22 percent.

Bottom Line: It's games like this that make the FIBA Basketball World Cup a celebration of the game. Two national teams with two different play style offered a thriller.

This could have been anybody's game, but the Angolans showed more composure in critical moments of the game to secure their first triumph in the tournament. In the process, they boosted their chances of making it to next year's FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament.

Credit to the Philippines, who never threw in the towel, despite being 12 points down in the third. 

They Said: "I think it was a good game for the fans and for us. I’m happy we got this win and  on to the next one. I’m always ready to help my team win some games even if it’s not a great game for me." - Angola guard Carlos Morais

"It got interesting in the end. Credit to the Philippines for battling back. We controlled the game but they came back. We just couldn’t really rebound in the second half. Yanick and Joaquim are two of our best players and we felt we could use them in good matchups today." - Angola head coach Will Voigt

"Great game for us. We needed to win to have a chance at the Olympics. Our effort was there tonight but we fell short."I try to do the right thing all the time and just exert extra effort. I feel the trust of coach Yeng and that helped me" - Philippines guard CJ Perez

"Still disappointed but at least we had a chance to win the game. Still kinda frustrating because we can’t make our three point shots. Still not enough for us to win and we had some bad breaks. I felt some bad calls were made on us, especially traveling calls." - Philippines head coach Yeng Guiao.

FIBA