Seven years after their infamous, brawl-marred clash in 2018, the Australian Boomers and Gilas Pilipinas met again on the FIBA Asia Cup stage — and this time, it was pure basketball.
Australia struck hard from the opening tip, burying Gilas under a barrage of threes and cruising to an 84-60 quarterfinal victory on Wednesday night at King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Owen Foxwell led the charge with 17 points, hitting one of the Boomers’ seven triples in a blistering first quarter that ended with the Philippines staring at a 29-12 deficit. Jaylin Galloway added 15 points, including two early treys that fueled a 13-4 start and set the tone for the rest of the game.
Kevin Quiambao matched Foxwell’s 17 points to pace Gilas, while Dwight Ramos posted 15 points and seven rebounds. Justin Brownlee, however, was held to just 10 points on 3-of-7 shooting as Australia’s defense clamped down on the veteran forward.
The win marked Australia’s second straight triumph over Gilas since their heated 2018 encounter.
