Japeth Aguilar dunks over Sri Lanka’s Duke Sanjeewa during the Powerade-RP Team’s FIBA-Asia championship opening match in Tianjin, China on Thursday. Aguilar had 15 points as the RP team won, 115-31. (NUKI SABIO of PBA)

Games Friday (Tianjin gym)
9 a.m. — Korea vs Sri Lanka
11:00 a.m. — Jordan vs Indonesia
2 p.m. — Lebanion vs UAE
4 p.m. — Taipei vs. Kuwait
7 p.m. — Kazakhstan vs China
9 p.m. — Japan vs RP

(Nankai University)
7 p.m. — Qatar vs India
9 p.m. — Iran vs Uzbekistan

TIANJIN — No surprises from Sri Lanka. No surprises from Powerade-Team Pilipinas either.

Still a step slow on defense early, struggling with their three-point shooting and free throws, and groping for balance and rhythm, the Nationals used superior talent and size advantage to overwhelm Sri Lanka, 115-31, Thursday in the start of the 25th FIBA Asia Men’s Championship at the Tianjin gym.

Slam-dunking Japeth Aguilar broke the ice with a 3-point play and there was no stopping the RP team from putting away its first assignment in the two-phase preliminary round.

It was 18-4 after two Aguilar jams and 44-17 at halftime, with no RP player breaking a sweat against the frenetically-defending but clearly overmatched Middle Asian team.

Jared Dillinger led the Nationals with 21 points on 10 of 15 shooting with 11 rebounds, Arwind Santos had 16, and Asi Taulava (13 rebounds), Cyrus Baguio and Aguilar (11 rebounds) 15 points each.

The Philippines closed out the game with 23 straight points.

“Basketball is still in the developmental stage in Sri Lanka. If these were cricket, they would have beaten us badly,” said national coach Yeng Guiao, drawing a smile from his counterpart Ajith Kuruppu.

No Sri Lankan player had more than eight points and they were trounced in every department, especially under the boards (63-21). But they came away knowing they had their shining, if short-lived, moments.

Adept in basketball as much as Filipinos are adroit in cricket, the energetic but grossly undersized Sri Lankans managed to expose glaring old habits which the RP coaching staff sought to break during a week-long reconfiguring session prior to the team’s departure Tuesday.

Against an opponent diminutive by Asian standards, the Nationals picked up two quick fouls with 60 seconds barely gone by, and they collected a third halfway through the first quarter.

They also missed 13 triples, shot just 63 percent from the foul line (15 of 27) – while handing the Sri Lankans 23 free throws – and committed 14 turnovers against a team made up mostly of soccer and cricket fanatics.

“We have very few indoor courts and 90 percent of the time we play outside,” said Ignatius Canegaretnam, vice president of the Sri Lanka Basketball Federation and member of the International Basketball Federation (FIBA) Asia Central Board.

“That’s one of the reasons we play here. Of course, the main reason is to make basketball catch up with cricket and soccer in Sri Lanka,” he added. “We’re also preparing for the South Asian Federation Games in Dhaka, Bangladesh in January.”

Up next after the picnic for the RP team is the war in the trenches against Japan at 9 p.m. Friday, with redemption for a blown 19-point lead against the Far Eastern team in the William Jones Cup tournament last month and a spot in the Group A vs. Group B elimination starting Sunday at stake.

“A good start for us in preparation for Japan and Korea. Now come the real tests,” said Guiao, who underscored the importance of the ensuing 48 hours by scheduling two practice sessions – one Thursday afternoon after the Japan-Korea match.

Japan clawed back from the double-digit deficit to win, 87-85, and returning from that squad are center Kosuke

Takeuchi (24 points, 8 rebounds), guard Shinsuke Kashiwagi (12 points) and veteran Takehiko Orimo.

The scores:
RP 115 — Dillinger 21, Santos 16, Taulava 15, Aguilar 15, Baguio 15, Thoss 11, Norwood 8, Miller 5, Helterbrand 5, Raymundo 4, Pennisi 0.
SRI LANKA 31 — Rajapakshe 8, Fernando 8, Danawansa 7, Senanayake 4, De Silva 2, Perera 2, Kolamba 0, Abesekara 0, Kulathunga 0, Serasinghe 0, Sooroyaarachchi 0.
Quarters: 28-9, 44-17, 86-26, 115-31.