BOCAUE, Bulacan -- (UPDATED) Jordan thwarted Gilas Pilipinas' furious fightback in the second half, dealing the nationals a 91-90 heartbreaker in their final game of the FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers at the Philippine Arena on Monday.

Justin Brownlee tried to will the nationals to victory, exploding for 41 points highlighted by five three-pointers on top of 12 rebounds and three assists.

Jamie Malonzo added 11 markers including two treys to go with five rebounds as Gilas failed to complete a two-game sweep of the sixth window of the qualifiers.

Gilas actually managed to claw its way back from a 25-point deficit, but missed the chance of closing out the taller Jordanians when Scottie Thompson missed two crucial free throws near the end of the match.

But nationals coach Chot Reyes blamed their defeat on a bad start after they allowed Jordan to outscore them 33-14 in the first quarter.

"It was a nightmare start for us. Credit to Jordan, they came out very sharp with a very good game plan. They prepared for us really well," he said.

Led by Freddy Ibrahim, the bigger Jordanians showed their might inside the shaded lane to take a quick 12-5 lead in the first quarter. Dwight Ramos and Jordan Heading tried to stop the bleeding for the nationals, but the Jordanians still managed to stretch the lead to 33-14.

Gilas came fighting back in the second stanza with Brownlee and Jamie Malonzo rallying the team. But Dar Tucker did heavy damage against the nationals to keep Jordan ahead for a 60-41 halftime lead.

The nationals stepped up their defense, holding Jordan to just 10 points in the third canto as Brownlee, Heading and Scottie Thompson mounted a rally that brought Gilas to within six points, 70-64, going to the fourth period.

Gilas continued their assault, with Brownlee and Ray Parks connecting their shots from beyond the arc. Parks' triple tied the score at 81-all, but the Jordanians were able to recover and put up an 86-83 cushion.

The nationals eventually tied it again, 88-all, with 1:49 to go. However, Caden Alnajdawi managed to sneak past Gilas' defense for a dunk that pushed Jordan, 91-90.

Thompson had the golden chance of winning it for Gilas when he drew a foul after grabbing an offensive rebound with 30 seconds remaining. Unfortunately, the Ginebra guard missed both of his free throw attempts and Parks misfired on a potential game-winner at the buzzer.

Reyes saw positives despite the defeat.

"Credit to our guys for not giving up. 20-25 points down and we still gave ourselves the chance to win the game. In the end, that's what these games are for... Tonight we got tested and despite the results we are still very pleased with the way we played," he said.

Tucker led the way for Jordan with 22 markers, while Ibrahim finished with 19. They were able to avenge their defeat to Gilas, who beat them 74-66 last November.

Gilas Pilipinas now has a 6-4 record, same as Jordan in Group E.

The nationals came into the game from a morale-boosting 107-96 win over former tormentor Lebanon last Friday. Jordan, on the other hand, was riding high on a 98-63 win over India which allowed the Jordanians to secure a spot in the World Cup.

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