The bare minimum expectation from fans was for Gilas Pilipinas to pick up at least a win in the FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers staged in the Clark bubble in Angeles City, Pampanga. Two wins would have been an acceptable result. Three wins seemed improbable. That would have entailed defeating Korea twice in a row, a feat no Philippine team has pulled off in decades.

Gilas Pilipinas delivered beyond expectations with a 3-0 record. In the three qualifying windows dating back to February 2020, Gilas Pilipinas has six wins to show for with zero defeats.

This squad is a validation of the long-held belief that lengthy preparation coupled with players who buy into a system designed by a world-class tactician in Tab Baldwin trumps any collection of big name pros and superstars who are given less than two weeks to prepare for major international competitions. It showed in how Gilas Pilipinas played like a well-oiled machine on both ends of the floor in this last qualifying window.

The Philippines averaged 79.6 points in three outings while giving up 68.6 points. The Filipino youngsters, with an average age of 22 years old, were a picture of boundless energy as they outhustled and outran the opposing teams. 

Against Indonesia, Gilas scored 16.3 points off turnovers against its opponent’s 7.6 points. In the two encounters versus South Korea, the Filipinos converted 13 points from the average of 11 turnovers they forced the Koreans to commit. Korea could only score 6.5 points off Gilas’ turnovers. Despite the team’s lack of experience, Gilas turned the ball over only an average of nine times in three games. 

Aside from their vaunted outside shooting, the Koreans are also known for their quickness in transition. In their first encounter against Gilas, the Koreans scored 16 fastbreak points as they built a huge first-half lead which the Philippines was eventually able to overhaul. In their second matchup, Gilas was able to stymie the running game of the Koreans, who could score only 3 fastbreak points. 

Gilas also averaged 19 second chance points while allowing its opponents to score only 13 second chance points. The Nationals registered 8 steals per outing and averaged 47 rebounds, 18.6 coming off the offensive end, while giving up 38.6 boards. 

One of the questions raised about the Gilas squad going into the qualifiers was the team’s ability to hit consistently from beyond the arc, a prerequisite to a successful campaign in international basketball.

In the first Gilas-Korea game, the Philippines actually shot better from three as the team sank 7 out of 21 attempts for a 33.3% shooting percentage, while the Koreans made only 10 out of 32 attempts (31.2%). The Philippines did even better the next game. Gilas made 14 out of 37 tries from beyond the arc for a 37.8% clip and limited the Koreans to just 28.6% (10 out of 35) from three. 

It is worth noting that the Gilas game plan was always anchored on a balanced attack. Only two players averaged in double digits for Gilas in the qualifiers. Even with the thrust on a total team effort, there were a number of individual performances that merited the spotlight. 

Dwight Ramos emerged as the main offensive weapon of Gilas in the last two windows. In the three games in Clark, Ramos normed 15 points. He was at his sharpest in the last game against Korea, where he drilled in five triples. He also grabbed 6.6 rebounds and led the team in steals with 2.3 per game. 

Much attention was reflected on the twin towers of Gilas Pilipinas, 6-foot-10 Angelo Kouame and 7-foot-3 Kai Sotto. The young giants did not disappoint as they held the fort against Lester Prosper of Indonesia and Ra Gun-ah (formerly Ricardo Ratliffe) of Korea. Kouame contributed 10 points and 6.3 rebounds. In his first game in a Philippine jersey against Korea, Kouame registered the highest plus-minus among all Gilas players. Sotto dusted off the rust of his mandatory quarantine and limited practice time with the team by still posting solid numbers of 9.3 points and 7 boards. 

The undersized backcourt pair of SJ Belangel and RJ Abarrientos made up for the absence of Matt Nieto and Juan Gomez de Liaño by playing with hearts that defied their height. Belangel’s name is probably now known in most parts of the country after his game-winner versus Korea. He was the steadying force for Gilas as he steadied the team’s plays while also averaging 7.3 markers. Abarrientos led Gilas in assists with 3.7 per game and scored 8.3 points. 

Two stretch fours impressed despite playing out of position in certain stretches of the game when they were converted to small forward. Justine Baltazar led the team in rebounds with 7.3 a game. The 6-foot-9 Baltazar scored 7.6 points per game and shot 45% from the three-point area. Twenty-year-old Carl Tamayo proved why next to Sotto, he is the country’s most promising big man. The 6-foot-8 Tamayo averaged 8 points and was a perfect 3-of-3 from three in two games before going down with an ankle sprain. 

Three players who flew under the radar could prove to be vital components of the team moving forward. Jordan Heading poured in 10 points against Korea on 50% shooting from the field, including two triples. 

Will Navarro and Mike Nieto did not figure prominently in the stat sheets, but the intangibles they provided were invaluable. At 6-foot-6, Navarro has both the length and the athleticism to be the team’s utility man and defensive specialist. The chase down block he made in their last game should be an indication that this is one guy who will not give up easily on defense. Nieto was one of the highest plus-minus contributors to Gilas’ cause in the second game against Korea. His spunk and effort led to a number of extra possessions for Gilas in the second half. 

There still is a lot of improvement that the team has to work on especially given the bigger picture this team has painted for the next two years. The pool that played in Clark, with a few more additions, will make up the core of the national team that will be groomed for the 2023 FIBA World Cup, which the country will be hosting. But at least as far as the recently concluded Asia Cup Qualifiers goes, Gilas Pilipinas can say that it has accomplished the mission it has set out to do. – Rappler.com