By: Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
THE Philippines’ worst shooting percentage from rainbow country, ever.
With Gilas Pilipinas’ elite shooters in Marcio Lassiter and Matthew Wright out of the tournament due to injuries, the team found themselves firing bricks and blanks, converting on only 13 percent of their shots from deep in a 108-62 loss at the hands of Italy.
The PH squad’s inability to produce points outside of the paint further exposed the team’s lack of size as the Italians took advantage of their superior height, abusing defenders throughout the game.
Gilas’ defense seemed too loose in the game, as the PH team relaxed in many situations, providing late help defense and soft doubles, enabling Italy to set up their brand of offense.
With little adversity, Italy’s motion defense was on display the whole game as the ball kept swinging from side to side with numerous pick and pops tearing Gilas’ defense apart.
NBA stars Marco Belinelli and Danilo Gallinari torched Gilas at will, as both combined for 25 points in limited minutes.
Despite the loss, PBA rookies CJ Perez and Robert Bolick left the court with confidence as they contributed solid numbers in their first world cup stint, with Perez scoring a game-high 15 points while Bolick chipped in 6.
June Mar Fajardo was able to contribute down-low, scoring 9 points, taking advantage of good seals and grabbing putbacks.
The 46-point rout will serve as a lesson to coach Yeng Guiao and his squad as they face world number 4 Serbia today.
