QUEZON CITY (Philippines) - The Philippines kept their mastery of Guam with a 95-71 rout to finish Window 1 of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2027 Asian Qualifiers unscathed, Monday night at the Blue Eagle Gym.
The crew raced to a 17-3 start into the match before pulling away for good in the second half toward clinching their second win in as many games, in the process joining Australia atop Group B as both teams tote 2-0 records.
Key players
All but one scored at least two in the wire-to-wire win, with Justin Brownlee showing the way once more with 20 points alongside 5 rebounds and 7 assists, adding 2 steals and 1 block as well for a full line.
Dwight Ramos delivered 19 points and 7 rebounds. Kevin Quiambao submitted a 12-4-5 stat line with a steal and a block, while Chris Newsome chipped in 10 points as the tandem bannered the bench support.
Turning point
It wasn't entirely smooth-sailing for the home team, though, as the visiting side competed in the third quarter behind Jericho Cruz's stewardship and managed to chop the gap to single digits a few times.
But Brownlee would hit one of his two threes of the game, before Newsome came in to help as the duo strung together a mini 7-1 rally to give themselves a 72-55 advantage at the end of the said chapter.
Ramos and Quiambao would then go on to banner the strong finish, coming through in the closing minutes to ensure the 24-point win for a solid follow-up to their 87-46 victory on the road two nights ago.