HOPE SPRINGS ETERNAL FOR SMART GILAS

The Smart Gilas Team Pilipinas may have lost the war in the 22^nd FIBA Asia Champions Cup but they have won the hearts of the entire nation. The Nationals failed a game short of a championship slot as they lost a heartbreaking 90-87 to the big, powerful and defending champions, Mahram of Iran before a big partisan crowd at the PhilSports Arena. The defeat relegated the Filipinos to a battle for third place against Al Rayyan of Qatar, which lost a lopsided 71-52 decision to the undefeated Al Riyadi of Lebanon in the other semis tiff. For awhile, many thought the game is over with about two minutes to go and Iran up by seven points but Gilas skipper Chris Tiu scattered five quick points to cut the lead down to just two with twenty seconds to play. We have our chances in the dying seconds but Mark Barroca and Marcio Lassiter bungled consecutive three-point shots that could have sent the game into an extension. Over-all, it was an inspiring game by Gilas as Mahram never led them by double-digit throughout the entire game. The performance in this tournament showcased the big improvement in their game with only three months to go before the all-important FIBA Asia Olympic qualifiers in Wuhan, China in September. National head coach Rajko Toroman says he is all-praised of his boys because they gave Mahram a run for their money and a team that he considered a better team than the Iranian National team itself, according to FIBA-Asia.

“I’m proud of the way the boys played against a team that is stronger than the Iranian National Team.”