GILAS SQUADS SURVIVE SEAG PRESSURE

BANGKOK, Thailand — As the saying goes in the hoops-crazy Philippines: You can lose in any sport but not in 5-on-5 basketball in the Southeast Asian Games.

Men’s team head coach Norman Black and women’s squad mentor Pat Aquino embraced that pressure two weeks ago when they flew in from Manila to Thailand’s capital city.

Add to that the humiliation suffered by the Gilas 3x3 squads, where they failed to win a single medal, and even higher expectations were set for the 5-on-5 teams.

Competition was intense. Every point, every rebound mattered.

In the end, both Gilas squads stood high and proud as the region’s kings and queens of basketball.

But the mint wasn’t given on a silver platter.

Gilas men’s team had to deal with numerous roster changes just to adhere to the biennial meet organizers’ confusing eligibility rules, which ultimately left Black scrambling for players.

With little time to build chemistry, Black relied on defense to get the Gilas through.

It was challenging, though, as the Pinoy cagers got into early trouble playing catch-up before hurdling Malaysia and Vietnam in the group stage.

Gilas barely escaped Indonesia in the semifinal to set up a gold medal title defense against home bet Thailand.

Playing on enemy territory, Gilas was unfazed even in the midst of the hostile crowd inside the Nimibutr Stadium here.

Not even the early foul trouble, a bad first half, and dubious calls diminished the determination of the Filipinos to win their second straight title and 20th overall.

Robert Bolick put the icing on the cake for Gilas with a pair of charities for 70-64 victory.

“They dedicated themselves in a very short period of time to the goal at hand, which is to win the gold medal. And all the credit goes to the players,” said Black, who returned to hold the rein for the first time since steering the team on top in the 2011 edition.

“I mean, it’s really difficult when you have a system that’s not very sophisticated. It’s a basic system, because that was all you could teach. The players picked it up well. When it came down the stretch. The bottom line is they played really good defense in most crucial part of the game. So, hats off to them.”

Black, a grand slam player and coach in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), ranked this SEA Games gold on the top of his list of championships.

“Right now, it ranks No. 1 because it’s the most recent one. And this has been a really difficult journey.”

A teary-eyed Aquino, meanwhile, was relieved the Filipinas’ redemption campaign was completed.

Dethroned two years ago, Gilas women’s fought their way into the crown by going through 2023 champion Indonesia before a tight 73-70 escape over the Thais in the gold medal duel.

“Amazing game, amazing run. I can’t say anything about the girls, they gave it all,” Aquino said.

“It’s been a hard battle going for the gold. Hopefully, we’ll get more.”

The journey was tough but Gilas men’s and women’s reached their destination.

They’ll go home smiling with gold medals hanging around their necks.