Gilas Pilipinas finished top of the pile at the MVP Cup, as a comprehensive 90-78 victory over Chinese Taipei on Sunday ensured they finished the competition with a perfect record.It means the Philippine national side finished ahead of Wellington Saints in the table; the latter secured their spot as runners-up with a strong final display, beating the Talk N Text Tropang Texters by a 101-78 scoreline earlier on in the day.The tournament has afforded the Philippines some key competitive preparation before the FIBA Asia Championship, which they will be expected to fare well in. The $25,000 prize awarded to the winners, per Mark Giongco of Inquirer.net, will do plenty to lift spirits ahead of that illustrious event.Heres how the standings finished up after all the sides involved completed their third match of the competition.Gilas Continue Fine FormThe Philippines were the standout team in the MVP Cup and their added quality was on show against a Chinese Taipei side who were always playing catch-up in this match.Some deadeye shooting from Andray Blatche and Terrence Romeo put Gilas 27-15 in front at the first interval. From then on Gilas continued chipping away, regularly putting points on the board, exerting control over the game and keeping their opponents at arms length.Chinese Taipei did put together a late rally in the fourth quarter, but they were too far back to make any real contest of this one and eventually, the 90-78 scoreline wasnt really a true reflection when it came to the gulf in quality between these two teams.Afterwards, the Philippines team were presented with the MVP Cup trophy, before being given a rousing reception by their supporters before they head off to the FIBA Asia Championship, per Marisse Panaligan on GMA News Online:With three wins from three, Gilas coach Tab Baldwin had little to be unhappy about. But he revealed it was the manner of these victories that most impressed him, per Jane Bracher of Rappler:It was successful. Not just because we ended up winning it but because we got good challenges. We got tough games and we played different styles of basketball in all 3 games.For us I think there was a lot of benefit to come out of the tournament and we're obviously thrilled with the result. We look forward to the second MVP Cup next year and have the opportunity to defend the title now.Romeo stood out once again for Gilas. Hes a player thats been happy to take on a role of talisman for the Philippines and after putting in a stirring performance in the previous match against Wellington, Romeo was cool and composed again when his team needed him on Sunday.Sports writer Carlo Pamintuan paid tribute to the improvements made by Romeo as of late:In the days other game, Wellington were very confident in their duties as they swatted aside Tropang. For a while this looked likely to be a tight contest, with Talk N Text ahead by four points in the third period. But the Saints were excellent in the final stages, racing into a big lead and making sure they finished up in second spot with a 101-78 win.The challenge for Gilas will be to carry the impressive form theyve showcased here into the Asia Championship, where the standard of opposition will be much higher.This a team that has a great chance of doing well in the tournament, with Baldwins astute tutelage getting the best of flair players such as Romeo. Needless to say, all eyes will be on this intriguing Philippines team when they begin the tournament against Palestine on September 23.
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