Gilas Pilipinas center June Mar Fajardo loses control of the ball during a game against Chinese Taipei at the 2025 Fiba Asia Cup.–FIBA PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines–June Mar Fajardo’s struggles were among the myriad of things Gilas Pilipinas encountered during its 95-87 loss to Chinese-Taipei in the opener of the Fiba Asia Cup in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

The San Miguel Beer star had only two points and two rebounds in 19 minutes off the bench while having to deal with the presence of Chinese-Taipei’s naturalized player Brandon Gilbeck.

READ: Gilas ‘didn’t play a good one’ vs Taipei, admits Tim Cone

Gilbeck provided problems for both Fajardo and AJ Edu down low and finished with 16 points and nine rebounds for the Taiwanese side.

Even when Gilbeck sat on the bench for a good portion of third, Fajardo appeared to also endure his matchup with backup Tseng Hsiang-Chun.

Fajardo also turned the ball over three times, two of which for traveling infractions while both going for a basket while the other was an offensive foul for elbowing Chinese-Taipei’s Chen Ying-Chun.

Netizens were quick to rue Fajardo’s performance in the game that saw Gilas trail by 17 in the first quarter and also deal with Justin Brownlee’s foul trouble.

READ: Gilas’ Kevin Quiambao a ‘highlight’ Fiba Asia Cup opening loss

Fajardo, who before the tournament was nursing a calf injury since the PBA Philippine Cup playoffs, was not the only player whose showing left plenty to be desired.

CJ Perez and Chris Newsome got the start for coach Tim Cone, but the former went scoreless in almost six minutes while the latter had three points and three assists, but Gilas was -13 when he’s on the floor.

Scottie Thompson and Dwight Ramos came off the bench and were left to carry the fight for Gilas during its comeback try in the second half.