PLAYING before a good-sized crowd on a lazy Monday night, Gilas Pilipinas failed in its mission to complete a two-game sweep, losing to a fired-up Jordanian side 90-91 in the final game of the FIBA World Cup Asian qualifiers at the cavernous Philippine Arena in Bocaue.
A horrible start spelled doom for Gilas, and not even a gritty comeback bid in the stretch could save the team, raising big questions on its coming campaign for the FIBA World Cup.
Coach Chot Reyes tipped his hat off to their Jordanian foes but his failure to make adjustments in the opening quarter that set the tone for the match left armchair pundits shaking their heads.
“It was a nightmare start for us. Credit to Jordan. They came out very sharp and with a very good game plan. They prepared for us really well,” Reyes said. “You saw that in the score in the first half. However, credit to our guys for not giving up.
“We were 25 points down and we clawed our way back and gave ourselves a chance. In the end, that’s what these games are for, right?” he added.
Gilas’ faulty start was in sharp contrast to its fine shooting display in a 107-96 win over Lebanon last Friday, leaving several questions that Reyes and his coaching staff need to answer in the coming days.
Reigning pro league MVP Scottie Thompson had the chance to take Gilas home, but he muffed two pressure-packed free throws in the last 31.3 ticks before Ray Parks Jr. missed on a jumper that could have won it for the home team.
Dar Tucker scattered 22 points and pulled down 12 rebounds for the Falcons, while Freddy Ibrahim chipped in 19 markers and eight assists.
Zaid Abbas also had 10 points as Jordan wound up with a 6-4 mark at the end of the qualifiers– the same record of Gilas.
The 6-foot-1 Thompson admitted his botched freebies will haunt him for a long time.
“Biggest missed free throws ko sa career ko,” a dejected Thompson said after the match.
“I’m going to learn from this. Sobrang ang dami kong nabigo na Pilipino. Masakit for me, but ito iyong pinaka-best reminder sa akin na I have to get better.”
Gilas trailed 41-60 at the halfway mark and later faced a huge 25-points deficit.
Naturalized player Brownlee carried the fight for Gilas with 41 points and 12 caroms, while Jamie Malonzo had 11 markers.
Jordan clinched a World Cup slot after New Zealand’s 110-63 thrashing of Saudi Arabia last Sunday.
The February window was actually a no-bearing qualifiers since the Philippines has qualified for the FIBA World Cup as co-hosts with Japan and Indonesia.
