Jakarta (Indonesia), July 15 (UNI) The Indian men’s basketball team suffered a 59-101 defeat against the Philippines in its second FIBA Asia Cup 2022 Group D match at the Istora Gelora Bung Karno Stadium, here on Friday.
MuinBek Hafeez was India’s standout player with 14 points followed by Pranav Prince with 11. William Navarro, with 18 points, and Thirdy Ravena, 17, did the damage for the Philippines.
This was India’s second loss in a row in the FIBA Asia Cup after a 100-47 thrashing against world No. 27 New Zealand in the opener. India is currently third in Group D with two points, just above Lebanon who have the same tally but have played a game less. The Philippines ranked 34th in the world, and started on the front foot, as expected, against an Indian basketball team ranked 48 places below them. India’s Pranav Prince dunked to get the scoreboard rolling but the Philippines soon took over the reins and raced to a 13-8 lead. Some great work by Muin Bek Hafeez helped India draw level at 13-13 but it was the last time the Indian team found itself on level terms with their opponents throughout the duration of the match.
