The Philippines Surprises, Annexes the Asian Games Basketball Crown!!!

Unbelievable!!! Team Philippines took arguably the most coveted and the most prestigious medal of all in the ongoing 19th Asian Games in China – the Basketball Gold Medal – in a week filled with high drama and emotion. In China, Chinese sportscasters lamented the loss of their basketball gold, which had long been a source of national pride. In the Philippines, the entire country rejoiced as a basketball crown returns after more than half a century’s absence.

Team Philippines, fondly called Gilas Pilipinas, had to take a long, arduous road in order to gift our basketball-crazy nation with the gold medal that mattered most. The team had been hastily re-organized after performing dismally in the recently-concluded FIBA World Cup held here in Manila. Gilas would lose its head coach Chot Reyes, plus 8 of 12 mainstays in the massive revamp that followed. Only 4 of the players would remain. But this did not discourage the new management.

When the newly-designated coach Tim Cone submitted his line-up, another 4 more were disallowed by the Chinese authorities. For some unexplained reason, the Philippine basketball authorities had submitted earlier a partial list of names, and the 4 added players were not included there. The final roster – a hodge-podge lot – was released barely days before the Games begun. In effect, the new team was a mix of 4 originals, 4 taken in as part of Coach Tim’s line-up ‘Team B’, and another 4 taken in to replace the 4 Team B players rejected by the Chinese authorities. This was then a ‘Team C’ being formed. Hence, there were no high expectations for this team as they flew to China for the Asiad.

During the qualifying round, Gilas would absorb a humiliating 87-62 loss to Jordan, forcing the team to take an extra win-or-die game against Qatar. A convincing win over Qatar 80-41 would prove providential for the team as the extra game provided them vital familiarization time with Tim Cone’s coaching philosophy, his offensive system and, more importantly, his defensive flow.

In the quarterfinals, Gilas escaped with a narrow 84-83 win over Iran. Gilas had earlier sprinted to an early 20-point lead before allowing the Iranians to close in and take the lead in the last minute. Luckily for Gilas, big man Jun Mar Fajardo and Justin Brownlee would save the day for the team. This was the second time the team had collapsed in the 4th canto, the first one during the lopsided loss to Jordan where they had gone toe-to-toe with their opponents in the first 3 quarters, before losing focus and sleepwalking through the 4th quarter.

In the semis, Gilas would do an even more astounding Houdini escape act. This time, they would come from behind a huge 21-point deficit in the 3rd quarter – and 9 points in the last 2 minutes – to score a miracle comeback victory over the heavy tourney favorites and host China 77-76. The heroic never-say-die assault led by Brownlee in the last 2 minutes will go down in history as perhaps the most thrilling comeback ever in the Asian Games. Gilas took the lead only in the last 24 seconds of the game, but that was all that mattered. China had one last chance to retake the lead, but the cage gods for once didn’t favor them. A missed shot from midrange, and China’s players, along with their rowdy homecourt fans, were stunned and silenced into submission.

Finally, in the championship match, Gilas relied on a tough-as-nails defense in the second half to slowly but surely wear down their erstwhile conqueror, Jordan, 70-60. It was a low-scoring, defense-oriented ballgame; and for Gilas, there would be no more 4th quarter collapse this time around, as the team focused on keeping their defenses air-tight.

Thus, the Philippines is once again on top of the Asian Basketball world! Remarkably. Dramatically. And tearfully so. It took all of 61 years to reclaim this elusive cage crown, but it most certainly was worth all the wait.

Justin Brownlee, our naturalized super-hero, provided the firepower when it was most needed. Justin was ably supported by resident do-it-all guard Scottie Thompson and rim protector Ange Kouame. Chris Newsome and Calvin Oftana, both discards in the Gilas FIBA World Cup roster but now elevated to starters in the new team, showed their mettle in the offense, and more importantly, in the defensive end.

The defense played a key role in the grudge match against Jordan, as Jordan’s resident Kobe Bryant, Rondae Hollis Jefferson, was held at bay. “We caught them on an off-shooting night,” said the ever-humble Coach Tim of the Jordanians, who were held to just 26 percent shooting overall (18-of-69). But it was most definitely the stifling defense, starring Newsome, Kouame, Brownlee and Thompson, that eventually frustrated the Jordanian offense.

This Asiad basketball gold medal turned out to be a most unexpected one, due to the fact that the team was hastily assembled, and did not have the benefit of a longer bonding and practice time together. The early 25-point shellacking administered by Jordan further showed that the team was a mere bronze medal hopeful. The twin single-point wins against Iran and China were considered lucky breaks, particularly the epic 9-point rally with 2 minutes to go against China. All these pointed to an inconsistent and weaker Gilas team. And this didn’t augur well for the team’s chances in the finals.

But the never-say-die attitude of the players, along with a coach who had a clear system and a humble demeanor that tried to give all the credit to his players, showed us that the country – given the right chemistry, the ample prep time and the proper coaching – has the talent and the smarts to ball with the best of them.

Gilas Pilipinas are Asian Games gold medal winners for the first time in 61 years. More than a lifetime for avid Pinoy cage fanatics. It is the first basketball gold since the legendary Caloy Loyzaga led the charge in Jakarta in 1962. And it should not be the last.

Here’s to coach Tim and his merry band of basketball buddies. Cheers to manager Al Chua and his boss, RSA, for stepping up to take the lead role. Also, this goes to the SBP, for making the tough decisions, and the humility to give in to the fans’ prayers. My salute to you all. Carry on!!!