By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
For the second-straight time, the Gilas Pilipinas men’s national basketball team failed to pick up an international friendly game win as a part of their preparation for the upcoming FIBA World Cup.
Gilas tasted a painful defeat at the hands of Finland, 89-85, last June 29, 2023, held at the Kalevi Sports Hall in Tallinn, Estonia.
The national team hoopers failed to bounce back from their disappointing loss to Estonia several days ago, 81-71, and again had the same issues after a slow start in the opening frame.
Gilas had to dig deep once again after trailing behind by 15 points after the first 10 minutes of action, 11-26.
Against Estonia, Gilas also failed to capture its desired fast-scoring start and were down by the same amount of points when they fell behind, 29-14, after the first quarter.
Gilas looked to pull off a stunning comeback against Finland when they were able to equalize the affair at 31-all but again lost gas in piling up the most important points.
To draw some positives, Gilas won the next three quarters in terms of scoring and the outcome would’ve been different if they weren’t down by double digits after the first frame.
Gilas head coach Chot Reyes then commended his team for their effort and was still happy with the results, especially against a higher-ranked FIBA nation.
Scottie Thompson finally graced the team after sitting out against Estonia but his crucial three-pointers in the last 1:50 of the game weren’t enough to spark a comeback.
Dwight Ramos remained consistent with his offense and dropped 15 points, three rebounds, and two blocks while Justin Brownlee added 11 points, three assists, and two steals.
After their games against Estonia and Finland, Gilas will fly to Lithuania and play a new set of international friendlies.
