Gilas has to play ‘perfect’ basketball
‘We were good against Turkey, we were better against Poland, but we have to be at our best from here on out’
Daily Tribune‘We were good against Turkey, we were better against Poland, but we have to be at our best from here on out’
Gilas Pilipinas will have to be at their best when they march into battle in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament in Riga, Latvia.
Having experienced playing against European powerhouse teams Turkey and Poland in a series of tuneup games, Gilas had a good feel of the competition come the qualifier for a spot in the Paris Olympics.
The Filipinos left for Latvia after wrapping up the last stop of their two friendlies in a tight loss to the world No. 15 Poles last Sunday.
Gilas’ fate of ending a 52-year Summer Games absence will depend if it can apply the necessary adjustments and execute against its group stage rivals world No. 6 Latvia and 23rd ranked Georgia.
One concern that Gilas will need to address is its costly miscues and defensive lapses.
“We need to limit our turnovers and get locked in defensively. It’s not just about competing, it’s all about winning,” Gilas team manager Richard del Rosario said.
The Nationals tested their mettle against world No. 24 Turkey last 28 June in a match that saw a rusty Gilas getting run over by the home team, 73-84, in Istanbul.
Two days later in Sosnowiec, the Tim Cone-mentored national squad gave Poland a scare before falling short, 80-82.
By the looks of things, the world No. 37 Gilas might give Latvia and Georgia a run for their money — that is if the team will play perfect basketball.
“We were good against Turkey, we were better against Poland, but we have to be at our best from here on out,” Del Rosario said.
But getting past the two European giants is easier said than done for the 11-man Gilas.
Both teams will parade rosters laden with National Basketball Association players and FIBA World Cup campaigners.
Although the Latvians won’t see NBA champion Kristaps Porzingis of the Boston Celtics suiting up due to an injury and last year’s World Cup main offensive weapon Andrejs Grazulis, they will still have Davis Bertans, Rolands Smits and Artus Zagars.
Seasoned NBA player Bertans averaged 12 points per game, Smits normed with 13.0 while Zagars had 12.4 markers and 7.4 assists during their World Cup stint. Latvia finished fifth the World Cup held in Manila.
Georgia, on the other hand, will have Orlando Magic’s Goga Bitadze and Alexander Mamukelashvili of the San Antonio Spurs.
Gilas battles Latvia on 4 July (12 midnight, Manila time) before facing Georgia (4 July, 8:30 p.m., Manila time).
The top two teams after the preliminary round will advance into the knockout semifinals against the top two in Group B composed of Brazil, Cameroon and Montenegro.