Justin Brownlee (left) wound up the Philippines’ best scorer during a series of friendlies recently. —CONTRIBUTED PHOTO ANAS AL-OMARI/JORDAN BASKETBALL FEDERATION
Gilas Pilipinas puts a string of unremarkable test games behind, setting its sights on the two road games that truly matter.
The Nationals, who flew back home after figuring in the nasty end of yet another beatdown, left for Taiwan on Tuesday looking to repeat against Chinese Taipei and New Zealand in the third and final window of the Fiba Asia Cup qualifiers.
Article continues after this advertisement
Program director and team manager Alfrancis Chua said that the contingent opted to make a short stop back in Manila instead of a connecting flight from Doha, Qatar, which would result in a layover in Hong Kong.
“I suggested we head back home to dump our dirty clothes and pick up a fresh set. That way, we also get to Taiwan in the afternoon, allowing us to rest and practice before the game against [Chinese] Taipei,” he said.
Gilas came back from Doha, Qatar, notching just a single victory throughout four-nation friendlies: They came back to stun the hosts, 74-71 in the first meeting, before running out of gas against continental rival Lebanon, 75-54, and then again versus Egypt, 86-55.
Article continues after this advertisement
Naturalized ace Justin Brownlee, to nobody’s surprise, wound up as the leading scorer for the Philippines in the series of contests that national coach Tim Cone labeled as “non-bearing games” but valuable simulations for the competition that awaited them in the main continental showpiece in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, this coming August.
Brownlee averaged 15.5 points, eight rebounds and three assists, with young cornerstone Dwight Ramos coming in as the Nationals’ second-best scorer after norming 10.
AJ Edu, who played his first Gilas games since the 2023 World Cup, put up averages of six points and eight rebounds. His numbers were acceptable if ranged against the history of knee problems he has battled—and recovered from—in the past.
In Taiwan, Gilas hopes to move closer to a rosy seeding in the Asia Cup. But a vengeful Chinese squad, which is expected to field a new-look roster, stands in the Filipinos’ way.
The two nations battle this Thursday, Nov. 20, with the home team hoping to breathe life into its fading bid. A win keeps them in the race for a wild-card ticket to the Jeddah meet.
The best has been saved for last as Gilas (4-0) finishes its road trip against New Zealand (3-1), a longtime tormentor whose egos were thoroughly pricked in the last meeting.
‘Close battle’
Tall Blacks coach Judd Flavell is making sure that there won’t be a repeat of the beating when the host Cone and his charges in Auckland on Sunday morning (Manila time).
“They are a country, I think, that are really similar to us—building on chemistry, cohesion. That’s what we’re trying to do as well,” he said in a video interview released by the Basketball New Zealand page on Monday.
“We had a close battle with them over in Manila. Such a competitive game. But nothing between both teams will be exactly the same,” he added.
Like Gilas, the Kiwis are also hoping to sweep the third window, as doing so would afford them a good seeding in the Asia Cup littered with capable opponents in Lebanon, Jordan, Japan, and more importantly, World No. 7 Australia, which finished sixth in the Paris Olympic Games.
Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.
Your subscription has been successful.
“Without taking our eyes off Hong Kong, we know we’ve got to do the business there in Hong Kong. But [we know] Spark Arena is going to be full. The makeup of the crowd numbers, I’m sure there’s going to be many Filipinos there and I’m sure the atmosphere is going to be crazy. It’s going to be amazing, and one—as a competitor—I think we’re all looking forward to,” Flavell said. INQ
