RP five pulls off great escape

BUSAN, South Korea — In the end it was a matter of heart and poise, and the Philippine team dug deep down for them in a nerve-wracking 79-74 victory over a fired-up Japanese team.

The drama-fraught contest churned out heroes after heroes from twists and turns of fortunes mainly because one crack Japanese single-handedly pushed the Nationals to the limit, and drew out these heroic deeds in the process.

There was Fil-Tongan Asi Taulava, the most consistent of the Nationals, holding the team together at the height of a gung-ho Japanese attack in the second quarter.

There was veteran Olsen Racela firing three-point shots after three-point shots and gift-wrapped them as birthday present to a son back home.

There was Jeffrey Cariaso, the sturdy guard who missed two trips to the Asian Games, dishing out the game-winning three-point play and earning a personal victory in a gut-wrenching duel with Japan’s Takahiko Orimo.

And then there was the entire RP team plodding on in the face of horrible officiating and prevailing in the end.

By the time Cariaso secured the win, the Filipinos hugged each other on the court, the bench celebrated with towel-waving, the RP-flag-draped fans shouted themselves hoarse on the stands and the nation heaved a sigh of relief.

And to think this was just the quarterfinals.

"A step closer to where we want to be," said national coach Jong Uichico after the great escape.

That set up the Nationals for another important meeting, this time with Chinese Taipei which defending champion China walloped, 113-50, in the first game. They clash at 3 p.m. Friday.

A victory over the Taiwanese will ensure a place for the Filipinos in the semifinals and prime them up for the crucial encounter with the Chinese.

As expected, Orimo, a 6-foot-2 veteran of the Bangkok Games, turned out to be the Nationals’ worst fear as he prowled the court, fired from all angles, defied Filipino defenders and waxed with a splendid shooting touch that brought to mind the legendary Masatomo Taniguchi. And the man was coming off a bout with the flu.

The 32-year old Orimo accounted for 33 points, including four from a rare four-point play that set up an eight-point lead for the Japanese, 69-61, with 6:17 left in the contest.

The Philippines then cranked up a do-or-die comeback as Taulava and Cariaso combined for five points, Racela fired one of his treys and Duremdes, the best offensive player in the elims, split his charities to tie the count at 69-all.

But Orimo, who so frustrated the Filipinos Cariaso sent him sprawling into a ball of pain in front of the RP bench before completing the four-point play, scored anew for 71-69.

The 30-year-old Cariaso scored from underneath on a Taulava miss but Takuya Kita pounded the baseline and drove off Duremdes, 73-71, going into the final 91 seconds.

Racela, dedicating every three-pointer to son Rafael who turned four back home, banged yet another trey and raced downcourt with a raised clenched fist, 74-71.

The hard-driving Kita drew another foul from Duremdes although he looked like he fumbled the ball, and split his free throws, 74-all, time down to 39.5 seconds.

Cariaso then took matters on his own hands, driving against Japan’s resolute zone and, like some poetic justice, drew Orimo’s fifth foul for the game-winning play, 77-74. Charities by Dondon Hontiveros as the Japanese lost heart finalized scoring, 79-74.

"I guess it’s a dream experience just to be here and have a game like this and an outcome like this. It’s a dream game," said Cariaso.

On Orimo, Cariaso said he was just lucky "I was able to stay with him. He has big guys setting up screens for him and he reads the defense very well. I raise my hands to the guy. He’s really good."

Said Uichico: "Japan gave us a great game. We came from behind but the players hang in there even if the game was not going our way."

Uichico refused to be drawn into a referee-bashing bit with the media saying the calls "were their judgment, they call what they see."

Czech ref Ivan Zachara and partner Jassim Gholoum of Qatar called a total of 16 fouls for the RP five in the first half against seven of Japan with Hontiveros and Rudy Hatfield drawing three fouls each.

"Both teams played very well but the Philippines got physical in the end and we missed some shots and missed our best player and then their No. 5 (Racela) and No. 12 made big plays under pressure," said Robert Dean Pierce, an American assistant coach in the Japanese team.