MANILA, Philippines - The president of the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas called it a “great moral victory” but at the same time reminded Filipinos that the real battle remains to be won.
The basketball-crazy nation jumped with joy as Gilas Pilipinas dragged a tall Croatian side into overtime Saturday and came close to winning its opening match in the FIBA World Cup.
No one expected the game to be close.
But the Gilas players, riding on the broad shoulders of NBA player Andray Blatche, almost pulled it off. They had golden chances to win the game in regulation and overtime.
Despite the loss, Filipino basketball fans hailed it as perhaps the proudest moment in Philippine basketball in many, many years.
It’s the first time in nearly four decades that the Philippines is in the World Cup. And last Saturday, there it was, standing as one of the top 24 basketball teams in the world.
Manny V. Pangilinan, the SBP president, is with the Gilas players in Seville, and will stay with them every step of the way.
“Well done Gilas. Well done indeed. You made us all very proud and grateful and, with an element of surprise, impressed FIBA and the global basketball world – including Croatia,” said MVP in his Twitter account.
The country’s biggest sports patron referred to Croatia as the “dragon.”
“From an historical perspective it is one small step forward after so many years of neglect, stupor and worse, resignation to our fate as a basketball doormat because of our size. We’ve injured those dragons yesterday, the task of killing them remains,” he said.
Pangilinan is a very busy man who seldom finds time to tweet. Before yesterday, the last time he posted anything on his account, which has over 81,000 followers, was 27 days ago.
After the game against Croatia, he tweeted at will.
“The Filipino heart was on the court for all to see, with no more proof needed that love for country animated our effort and our game. This view simply reflects the sense of the vast majority of our people back home, here in Spain and elsewhere in the world,” said Pangilinan.
He hoped that the Gilas players, as well as their fans, would realize that the target remains.
“Whilst a great moral victory was undoubtedly achieved, it is one game statistically and it goes on the record books as a loss. Let’s remember these, too. To stay grounded and not get lost in the euphoria of the moment,” he said.
“As (Winston) Churchill said: Wars are not won with perceptions of moral victories. They simply must be won,” Pangilinan added.
He then quoted the American poet, Robert Frost.
“Whilst I’m at it, Robert Frost should remind us that there are miles to go before we sleep, miles to go. God bless Gilas. God bless the Philippines,” Pangilinan said.
Gilas has yet to slay the dragon.