2023 FIBA Under-16 Asian Championship: Alas waxes hot anew in Gilas boys romp of Malaysia

Kieffer Louie Alas continued to sizzle for Gilas Pilipinas to whip Malaysia, 75-52, in their last Group D assignment in the 2023 FIBA Under-16 Asian Championship at Al-Rayyan Indoor Hall in Doha, Qatar on Wednesday, September 20 (Manila time).

The younger brother of NLEX Road Warriors star Kevin Alas had a double-double effort of 15 points and 13 rebounds for the Philippines to finish the group stages with a 2-1 record. He finished with 18 points, 10 rebounds, three steals, and two assists in their last outing versus Kazakhstan.

Alas and the rest of Gilas boys will take on South Korea in a do-or-die clash on Friday, September 22, to reach the quarterfinals.

History is not on head coach Josh Reyes and company's side as the Southeast Asian country never won against the East Asians at the youth level.

Kurt Nathan Velasquez added 13 points, seven rebounds, three assists, and two steals for Gilas. Elijah Mark Williams contributed nine markers and nine assists, while Bonn Ervin Daja registered seven points and 10 rebounds.

Coming off a blowout win over the Kazakhs, Gilas scored a repeat of their dominant 94-52 walloping of the Malaysians during the 2023 Southeast Asia Basketball Association (SEAB) U-16 Championship by drubbing the same foe.

Leading by just 12-6 with 4:09 left in the opening period, the Filipino cagers unleashed a 17-0 blitz to establish a 29-8 lead. Velasquez caught fire in this quarter as he scored nine of his 13 points here.

The Malaysians never recovered from there to find themselves relegated to the classification round, exiting the group stages with back-to-back losses after beating Kazakhstan in their first game.

No Malaysian player netted double figures, with Tze Hen Brandon Kho, Yen Joon Chua, and Elvin Hoo chipping in seven points apiece.