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The future looks bright for the all-cadet Gilas Pilipinas after it wrapped up the FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers without a loss.

Months of preparation paid dividends for the young national team as it cruised to blowout wins against Indonesia and Thailand and pulled off back-to-back stunners against Korea.

“I think the sky is the limit because we just started to get together, we’re starting to get to know one another even better,” said Gilas Pilipinas team captain Isaac Go.

“As we develop into a more cohesive team, we’ll be able to read, see maybe the misreads on the court, the little bit of disconnect at times. It is only through time that you can build this synergy.”

Expectations were modest for the national team going into the final window of the Asia Cup Qualifiers in Clark, Pampanga, as the Philippines had two games against Korea scheduled.

For context, no Filipino squad had beaten the Koreans since that sensational semifinals win in the 2013 FIBA Asia Championship that sent the country to the FIBA World Cup for the first time in nearly four decades.

But this current crop of national team players – composed mostly of high school and collegiate standouts – showed poise beyond their years.

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In their first encounter, the Philippines fought back from a 17-point deficit and shocked Korea in an 81-78 victory, thanks to an SJ Belangel game-winner at the buzzer.

Their second tussle saw Gilas Pilipinas keep in pace with Korea in the first three quarters and build enough cushion in the closing minutes to escape with the 82-77 triumph.

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“I think it just shows how much we work and how much we put in and that given enough preparation, any team can be competitive,” Go said.

“[I] think a lot of people did not have us competitive against Korea. Because Korea brought their A team, they put their pros. I think on paper, if you look at it, people are going to say, ‘Yeah, we’ll pick Korea to win the game.'”

“There are factors there that you cannot put aside and it shows that given enough time and preparation, you can be competitive.”

With its ticket to the Asia Cup already booked, Gilas Pilipinas now shifts its focus to the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament, where host Serbia and Dominican Republic await.

“I’m really excited for what the future holds for us,” Go said. – Rappler.com