Gilas Off to a Good Start, Outlasts Japan
Gilas Pilipinas got the country’s pursuit of a World Cup berth off to a roaring, albeit rocky start, outlasting a hard-charging Japanese squad 77–71 before a packed Komazawa Olympic Park General Sports Ground Gymnasium in Tokyo.
Jayson Castro proved yet again why he remains Asia’s best point guard until further notice, leading the way for the Nationals like a maestro on the court. The Blur topscored for Gilas, uncorking 20 points on 7–13 shooting from the field, including a dagger trey with a little over a minute left to put the game on ice. Castro also grabbed 7 rebounds, dished off 6 assists, and had 1 steal.
Natural reinforcement Andray Blatche, back after missing Gilas’s previous international stints, and the sweet-shooting Matthew Wright backstopped Castro, with the 6-10 center filling the stat sheet with 13 points, 12 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, and 3 blocks. Wright, meanwhile, dropped in 12 markers, including 6 points—3 from a trey and another 3 from a trio of foul throws—in a pivotal third quarter stretch when the Nationals found trouble finding the basket against the Japanese zone.
Gilas started the game strong, erecting a 10-point lead in a low-scoring first quarter behind the solid play of the ever-reliable Gabe Norwood. The Nationals extended their lead to 14 in the second, with Calvin Abueva providing his usual trademark energy, before settling for 9-point advantage, 37–28, at the end of the half.
The Julio Llamas-coached Japanese squad, though, came out of the halftime break with guns ablaze, unloading 12 straight points to snatch the lead from Gilas, 40–37. Bleeding for points, the Nationals turned to Wright, who drained a timely trey off of a Castro dime to tie the game at 40. Minutes later, the Phoenix guard swished three free throws to put Gilas ahead, 46–44.
The game was still deadlocked at 46 with a little less than 4 minutes in the third canto when Gilas scored 7 unanswered points to build a bit of a cushion, 53–46. But Japan wiped out that lead just two minutes later as they uncorked their own 7–0 run. Gilas nonetheless held on for a 59–55 lead going to the fourth and final frame.
Gilas kept Japan, which was paced by Makoto Hiejima’s 20 markers, at bay through most of the fourth quarter with timely baskets from Blatche, Castro, and reigning PBA rookie of the year RR Pogoy. The Japanese threatened one last time at 69–72 with 1:38 left in the game, but Castro dashed any more hopes of an upset by hitting a dagger triple seconds later to seal the deal for the Filipinos.
With the hard-fought win, Gilas joined the Boomers of Australia atop the Group B leader board, each with a win and 2 precious points. The Nationals next play fierce rival Chinese-Taipei on Monday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
Written by Martin Dale D. Bolima.
Martin is a copy editor for the University Press of First Asia. He is an avid sports fan. He used to keep a sports blog at http://pinoysportsnet.blogspot.com/.
Photos from fiba.basketball
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