NT Press Release
Panthers survive South Korea, 111-110
It took a last second shot from Royce Cardino for the Pilipinas Panthers to sneak past 45th ranked South Korea in the Season 55 opener of the Seniors basketball tournament.
Team Pilipinas had no answer for the tandem of Hee Suk We and Hee Tae Kim, who scored a combined 67 points, including a 52% clip from behind the arc (11-21 conversions). “Those two were really good today. Fortunately, we were able to execute in our final play,” coach Morwood said during the post-game conference.
Substitute James Mabaquiao led the Panthers’ charge with 25 points, who was closely followed by Royce Cardino, who finished the game with 22 points and 15 rebounds.
Because of the win, everyone from Team Pilipinas is advised to stay indoors until their next matchup against 6th seed Hong Kong. There are rumors circulating in social media, saying men wearing red hooded jumpsuits, and black facemasks that have either a square, triangle, or circle, were spotted roaming around the hotel where the Panthers are staying. Local police authorities are not commenting on the matter.
A white van was spotted, two blocks from the hotel, playing the tune, “mugunghwa kkoch-i pieossseubnida”.