Watch FIBA Asia Cup 2014 quarter final highlights Philippines vs India at Wuhan, China. The 5th FIBA Asia Cup takes place in the Wuhan, China from July 1119, 2014.
Gilas Pilipinas proved that adage true on Thursday after running down a much taller India squad, 70-66, in the FIBA Asia Cup quarterfinals in Wuhan, China.
The win gave the Philippines a ticket to the tournament's final four, where it will battle defending Asian champions Iran, which defeated Jordan it their own quarterfinals matchup.
For the fourth straight game, Rain or Shine star Paul Lee led the Philippines in scoring with 15 points on 3-of-4 shooting from beyond the arc. Naturalized center Marcus Douthit held his own against India's big boys, scoring 14 points and adding 11 rebounds. De Ocampo, the hero of Gilas' squeaker over Jordan last Tuesday, added 13 points.
Friday's semifinal pairing between the two nations will mark a rematch of the title game of last year's FIBA Asia Championship held in the Philippines.
Against an India team loaded with a bunch of tall centers and forwards, the Filipinos used their trademark speed and outside shooting to come away with the victory.
Despite being considered minnows in the region in previous years, India's size figured to be a tough test for the Philippines coming into the game, with the South Asian nation fashioning out a win over powerhouse China earlier in the tournament.
But after a tight start, the Philippines' early offense, quick passing, and pin-point shooting finally broke India's zone defense.
Back-to-back three-pointers from Ranidel De Ocampo and Jay Washington late in the first quarter sparked a furious 26-5 run that gave Gilas a 40-22 lead midway through the second period.
India threatened late, cutting the deficit to just seven points, 70-63, on a three-pointer from Pratham Singh that trickled in with 1:39 remaining. India followed that up by forcing a turnover leading to an easy layup for Vishesh Briguvanshi to come within five, 70-65.
After a miss by Gary David, India had a chance to come eve closer, but was foiled by the Gilas defense. David missed again on the next trip for Gilas, but De Ocampo kept the ball alive to give Gilas the possession anew.
LA Tenorio could not give the Philippines more breathing room after missing two free throws, but India did not have enough time to overhaul the deficit.
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