THE bid of the Philippine men's 3x3 team to win back the gold came short Sunday as host Cambodia pulled off a 20-15 win in the halfcourt competition final of the 32nd Southeast Asian Games.
With three naturalized players in Sayeed Pridgett, Darrin Dorsey, and Brando Peterson anchoring their bid, the Cambodians dominated their way to the gold with a five-game sweep of the tournament, including a victory over the Filipinos, the inaugural winner of the event.
It was the first ever 3x3 gold medal for the Cambodians, who were heartily cheered by the jampacked crowd at the Morodok Techo Elephant Hall.
The Filipino quartet led by Almond Vosotros trailed the host for most of the game, with the Greek League-honed Pridgett proving to be the thorn on the side of Gilas Pilipinas.
Pridgett, a 24-year-old American who was a product of the University of Montana, scored against Gilas time and time again as he finished with a game-high 10 points.
Sponsored content: Vosotros had six points to lead the Philippine charge, which consoled itself by finishing a notch higher than the bronze medal it took home from last year during the Hanoi edition of the biennial meet.
"Heads up, heads up," Vosotros urged the team shortly after the gold medal play.
The Filipinos entered the gold medal play on a high note, following their 21-19 come-from-behind win against deposed champion Thailand behind the game-clinching deuce of Joseph Sedurifa.
But somehow, they couldn't replicate the same performance against the Cambodians, who raced to an 11-6 lead and never looked back.
Cambodia beat Vietnam during the semifinals, 21-19, to advance.
Sponsored content: Sedurifa, Joseph Eriobu, and Lervin Flores complete the Gilas 3x3 team coached by Lester Del Rosario.(RG)
The scores
Cambodia (20) - Pridgett 10, Peterson 6, Tep 4, Dorsey 0.
Philippines (15) - Vosotros 6, Sedurifa 4, Flores 4, Eriobu 1.
