The Tall Blacks have suffered their first defeat by the Philippines in their FIBA Asia Cup qualifying match in Manila overnight.
The Kiwi side had a strong fourth-quarter fightback but narrowly lost 93-89.
The Tall Blacks led at the end of the first-quarter 22-20, before the Philippines fought back to tie the game at half-time 45-all.
A match-defining third period from the Philippines decided the encounter, taking the quarter 27-18 for a strong lead of 72-63.
Head coach Judd Flavell's Tall Blacks will rue a poor five-minute spell at the end of the third quarter, when defensive lapses allowed Philippines to go on a 16-point run.
The Philippines' 27-point third quarter was aided by multiple turnovers and poor defensive decisions by the Tall Blacks.
However, the Kiwi side were still well in the match and brought the deficit back to two points with under two minutes remaining.
A frantic final 60 seconds saw Tom Vodanovich record his fifth triple of the night before Justin Brownlee made two crucial free throws to extend the home side's lead to four in the closing stages.
The Philippines stormed home to their first win over the Kiwis in front of a 20,000-strong crowd, while also putting the team on the verge of booking their place at the FIBA Asia Cup in Saudi Arabia next year.
Flavell could not fault his side's effort in his first game in charge of the national team but highlighted that third quarter lapse as costly.
"That was a good battle between two teams that bring a different game, the Philippines play a different style, they are a post up team with two true bigs out there and a big guard in Brownlee," said Flavell.
"I thought we matched their physicality for most of the ball game, but there were patches there where they got extra rebounds and created momentum, and that was the story of the third quarter."
Flavell said he was pleased with some aspects of their performance, especially the fight shown in the fourth quarter.
"There was a lot to like out there, we had great spacing where we could attack and find shooters when the ball was moving, and we shot the ball really well. There are huge positives, and the fourth quarter fight was one for me. For the majority of the contest, I really enjoyed watching us battle and staying in the contest, and just battling hard."
The Tall Blacks now sit second in their FIBA Asia Cup qualifying group, behind the Philippines who are unbeaten with three wins from three matches.
The Tall Blacks will now return to New Zealand to host Chinese Taipei in Christchurch on Monday night.
Philippines 93 (Brownlee 26, Sotto 19, Thomson 12) Tall Blacks 89 (Webster 25, Waardenburg 19, Vodanovich 19, Britt 13 assists)
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