Lebanon needed a last second triple from Rony Fahed to rally past the Philippines, 65-62, last night in the 29th William Jones Cup International Basketball Tournament in Taipei.

The Filipinos looked headed for their second victory, after Filipino-American Gabe Norwood's emphatic dunk off a Jimmy Alapag feed gave them a 54-44 lead with eight minutes left.

But the Lebanese, who trailed all the way and by as much as 11 points, 45-34 and 33-22, had other plans in mind, unleashing a last-quarter spurt capped by Fahed's triple off the glass.

It was only Lebanon's third triple of the match. In contrast, the Filipinos managed to hit seven shots from beyond the arc.

But their outside shooting deserted them in the final period, where they were only held to 10 points, while Lebanon managed to score 21.

The Filipinos' inconsistency was reflected on the stat sheet as Norwood and Dondon Hontiveros were the only players in double-figures with 10 points.

Negrense cager James Yap, who did not play against the US, chipped in 7 points that included a triple and a jumper, but was conspicuously absent down the stretch.

Lebanon inched its way back into the ballgame with its tenacious defense and cut the lead to one, 62-61, on its second triple of the match courtesy of F.E. Khatib with more than a minute left.

Mark Caguioa, the star in the win against the US, was called for a dribbling infraction, swinging the ball back to the Lebanese, which drew a foul from Gabe Norwood. Balaa split the free throws, tying the count at 62 with 17 seconds left.

Instead of opting for the last shot, Norwood split the defense and passed to a wide-open Hontiveros, whose mid-range jumper rattled in and out with 8 seconds left, allowing the Lebanese to bring the ball down court and steal the game.

The loss sent the Filipinos to 1-1, in a tie with Jordan, Kazakhstan and the defending champion United States squad which the RP five conquered Monday, 72-65.

The Koreans earlier salvaged a 71-65 decision of Jordan to tie Lebanon on top with a 2-0 record.

The Filipinos are taking a serious look at Jordan and Iran as both teams are in their bracket in the coming Asia Fiba championship, which serves as the qualifying tournament for the Olympics.

The Americans vented their ire at Qatar, 106-68, while the Kazakhs overwhelmed Japan, 96-61.

Khatib finished with a game-high 26 points for Lebanon, ranked No. 2 among the teams in Asia.

Caguioa had 7 points, the same output with Asi Taulava, while Mick Pennisi and Alapag added 6 and 5, respectively.*CPT

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