Gilas Pilipinas managed to go toe-to-toe against the superiorly ranked Dominican Republic in the first two quarters of their all-important FIBA World Cup match at the Philippine Arena on Friday.
Dwight Ramos drew first blood for Gilas, opening the game with a basket. A few plays later, the Filipinos found themselves trailing after an and-1 play by Karl Anthony-Towns had the visitors up, 17-11.
The Filipinos managed to get closer, 22-18, going into the second quarter, thanks to Jordan Clarkson and Scottie Thompson.
Kiefer Ravena and Clarkson then orchestrated an 8-0 run that gave Gilas a 31-29 upper hand. The Dominicans would sometimes reclaim the lead, but the Filipinos kept fighting back.
A two-handed jam by Abando tied the score at 42-all before the end of the half.
Clarkson tried to add the count but missed his shot from half court as time expired.
