Koreans deal Gilas another heartbreaker

TAIPEI – Gilas Pilipinas found the worst time to run into a hideous shooting slump and yielded to one team it hated to lose to in regional wars as South Korea virtually ousted the Filipinos with an 83-72 victory in the Jones Cup at the Taipei Peace Basketball Gymnasium here last night.

The Filipinos agonized from the quartercourt with their poor shooting, going 1-of-26 from the three-point range and committed costly defensive breakdowns just when they came within four points in a rally from a couple of 17-point deficits.

The Koreans, who hit six triples, converted crucial free throws in the crunch to secure the win and deal the Filipinos a telling blow in their title bid in the tournament won by Philippine club team Mighty Sports last year.

And the defeat was more galling, dealt by the Koreans who had given the Filipinos their worst beating and finest moments in a long history of Asian rivalry.

It took Team Gilas a big heart and a scrappy stand to keep it close in the last five minutes despite trailing by 17 points twice. But lacking sustained offensive, the Filipinos finally broke down in the end under the weight of the Koreans’ tremendous sniping.

“We can’t beat a team that zones us if we can’t make our outside shots,” said Gilas coach Chot Reyes, ruing a terrible four-percent threepoint shooting that caused their second loss in five games.

Gilas dropped to fourth place while Korea remained in joint lead with Canada 150 and Atletas All-Star Lithuania at 4-1.

“I thought we came out with a great effort. I’m very proud how our guys fought a very good, high-quality Korean team. I thought we held our own on defense,” Reyes said. “We essentially held a good team to 83 points that should have been enough if we’re hitting our shots. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.”