In the end, the basketball gods smiled and nodded at the Philippine national team.
Gilas Pilipinas finished as the 24th-ranked team in the 32-nation field of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 – third-best in Asia – and breathed life to its Paris 2024 hopes after securing a ticket to the Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT).
It was a great end to a tough and bumpy campaign as the Nationals bettered their last place finish in the 2019 edition and avoided going winless after winding up with a 1-4 record following a rousing 96-75 victory over China last Saturday, September 2, before a crowd of more than 11,000 who waded through a storm to be at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
The victory over its Asian rival poured sweet honey onto an earlier bitter-tasting run after the Filipinos fell short in their brave stands against Dominican Republic, Angola, and Italy in the group stage.
The Nationals held their ground before losing steam against the Karl-Anthony Towns-led Dominicans 87-81 before a FIBA record crowd of 38,115 at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan.
Gilas Pilipinas had high hopes of finally picking up its first win against Angola, but the African qualifier also denied the Philippine fightback to come away with an 80-70 win.
Against world no. 10 Italy, the Filipinos fell behind by 18 points then battled back to within four, only to suffer the same heartbreaking fate via a 93-80 loss.
The most painful defeat, however, came in the classification round as Gilas Pilipinas not only suffered its first blowout loss, but also saw its bid for an outright spot to the Olympics dashed by an 87-68 loss against upstart South Sudan.
Ironically, the Bright Stars secured an Olympic berth later after beating Angola and then watching Egypt fall to New Zealand.
Philippine head coach Chot Reyes said the team was glad to finally gift the Filipino crowd, who still trooped to the venue despite the stormy weather and disappointments from previous losses, a victory in their home turf.
“We reminded the players that no matter the typhoon, the weather, being essentially a no-bearing game, the crowd still came, Filipinos still came to watch. I told the players, ‘Let’s give them a present,’” said Reyes.
“Make sure we end this with a gift to the Filipino people for their continued belief and support for the team. Let’s dig deep,” he added.
Jordan Clarkson emerged as the vital cog in the victory, dropping 34 points in the contest – the most by any Filipino player in the World Cup, surpassing the 33 and 31 points of Mon Cruz in the 1978 edition and the 31 points of FIBA Hall of Famer Carlos ‘Big Difference’ Loyzaga in 1951.
More importantly, the win ended a nine-game drought for Gilas Pilipinas in the world stage with its last win dating back to the 2014 edition in Seville, Spain when they – also under Reyes, but with Andray Blatche, Jimmy Alapag, and Jayson Castro showing the way – outlasted Senegal in overtime 81-79, also in the Nationals’ last on- court appearance.
“We had to dig deep and that’s what the players did. Every single one of them, (I’m) so proud. Unfortunately, the result didn’t come out as we expected, but to end with the win, no greater feeling,” said Reyes.
Another last hurrah to celebrate for the Philippine team in the FIBA World Cup. And another suspenseful ending to a script that was nine years in the making.