Gilas tear down Kazakhstan wall

JAKARTA, Indonesia – Gilas Pilipinas arrived here ready despite having merely two weeks of buildup, crushing the taller, heftier Kazakhstan squad, 96-59, to kick off its quest in the men’s basketball competition of the 18th Asian Games at the Gelora Bung Karno Stadium basketball hall here.

Stanley Pringle spearheaded the attack to underscore the great chemistry, coaching and rival scouting that led to this morale-boosting victory for the Rain or Shine and Philippine Basketball Association-backed Philippine Team.

The Nationals marched into the match bracing for an all-out war as the Kazakhs served as their biggest stumbling block before they face China next.

In the previous Asian Games in Incheon in 2014, the Kazakhs denied the Filipinos a chance at advancing to the medal round via a 65-67 setback.

That loss came down as one of the darkest chapters in Philippine basketball history as naturalized player Marcus Douthit had to make a mockery of the rules by shooting at the Kazakhstan basket just to stay alive and capture an 11-point spread.

After the Asian Games, suspended Gilas coach Chot Reyes met an avalanche of criticisms, prompting him to step down and hand the coaching reign to Tab Baldwin, who led the squad in the FIBA Olympic Qualifying tournament before giving his post back to Reyes.

But the Nationals slayed the ghost of Kazakhstan with Guiao at the helm.

Guiao credited their conquest to their great scouting and preparation, led by chief scout Ryan Gregorio and assistant coach Caloy Garcia.

The squad prepared for less than two weeks following the dilly-dallying by the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) on whether to send a team to the Asiad or stay firm on an earlier decision to withdraw from the Games.

But the chemistry of the team was evident as six players in Gabe Norwood, Stanley Pringle, Mav Ahanmisi, Chris Tiu, James Yap, Raymund Almazan and Beau Belga are active Rain or Shine players while veterans Asi Taulava and Paul Lee are no strangers to Guiao’s coaching style.

With Pringle at the helm, the Nationals took the fight out of the Kazakhs early on as they posted a quick 16-5 lead before padding it to as many as 37 points for the final count, 96-59.

“The coaching staff did an excellent staff scouting and preparing our defensive sequences,” Guiao told Daily Tribune whose Asiad coverage is supported by Primehomes.

“We were able to take out their offense, we were able to challenge their shots, our anticipation was good and that’s because of the scouting we did and the implementation and execution by the players.”

Pringle delivered 18 points and four rebounds in 22 minutes of action while Filipino-German Christian Standhardinger bulldozed the solid Kazakhstan defense with 15 markers and five rebounds on seven-for-11 shooting clip.

With the victory, the Nationals will be marching to a crucial game against China – a squad they have yet to beat in an elite tourney – oozing with morale.

The good news is that Filipino-American Jordan Clarkson will finally be suiting up after finally getting cleared by both the National Basketball Association and the Olympic Council of Asia.

Clarkson landed at the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport before lunch and went straight to the venue to cheer on the Gilas squad.

He was welcomed by loud cheers from the bench with old friends Taulava and Norwood serving as his welcoming party.