Gilas Women earn Division A stay

Gilas Women staying in Division A

The Philippines is set to depart from Jordan on a winning note, holding on to a 74-70 victory over India in the seventh-place game at the FIBA Asia Cup for Women.

Janine Pontejos and Khate Castillo took over for the Gilas Women late Thursday, each torching the net for 22 points.

With the Philippines struggling to find an offensive contributor early on, Pontejos carried the team on her back, scoring their first eight points.

Castillo then took over in the second half with her sniping from deep, allowing the Pat Aquino-coached side to have a large enough cushion to fend off a late comeback from the South Asian side.

"Just so happy. I'm very, very happy with the girls. They didn't stop competing," Aquino shared post-match. "I know for the past three games, we were struggling, definitely. But today, I know they played together, and as a team. Good victory for us."

The mentor and Gilas Women program director also credited the Filipino fans who flocked to the Prince Hamza Arena all tournament long.

"The fans are very special everywhere we go," he shares, adding "There are lots of Filipinos around the world and the fans always come out and support us. They really supported our athletes and our journey here and without them, we probably would not have been as lucky as we were today. We are so happy and would like to say thank you to everyone who supported us."

Pushpa Senthil Kumar led India with fifteen points.

By securing the victory, the Philippines locked up another stint in Division A for a couple more years. India drops down to Division B, to be replaced by that group's winner when they play later this year.