Gilas out to banish ghost of Busan

GUANGZHOU – The Smart Gilas Philippines takes a rare crack at redemption and revenge for a shocking last-second defeat to a South Korean team eight years ago in Busan, which still rankles in the heart of Filipino fans to this day.

The national team was seconds away from making the gold-medal match in the Busan Asian Games in 2002 when hit by a dagger of a three-pointer by Korean hotshot Lee Sang Min.

It was a sad chapter in Philippine basketball history and Smart Gilas Phl hopes to make up for that loss as it takes on the Koreans in the quarterfinal round of the 16th Asian Games basketball competition at the Huangpu Gymnasium here today.

It’s the start of the knockout stage among eight remaining teams that include host and defending champion China, back-to-back Fiba Asia champion Iran, Jordan, Japan, Qatar and North Korea.

The Philippines and South Korea, whose cage rivalry dates back to the 60s, clash at 1:15 p.m. with the winner advancing to the semifinals against the winner of the Japan-North Korea tiff set at 3:30 p.m.

The other quarterfinal pairings pit China versus Qatar and Iran against Jordan. The winners in these matches meet in the Final Four.

Smart Gilas salvaged the third quarterfinal spot in Group F as it topped Chinese Taipei, 82-73, while Qatar bowed to Iran, 46-88, Monday night.

Though short-handed minus injured players Japeth Aguilar and Sol Mercado, the Nationals survived a knockout game with the Taiwanese, keeping the country in the hunt for a first Asiad medal in 12 years.

Smart Gilas Phl hopes to get going, raring to take on a Korean team honed up with the help of eminent American coach Lenny Wilkens.

“I’m optimistic against Korea. It’s a good match-up for us,” said Smart Gilas coach Rajko Toroman.

“I think we can compete with them,” said assistant coach Chot Reyes.

The Chinese Taipei game could well help the Nationals figure out their quarterfinal foes since the Taiwanese and the Koreas virtuallly dish out the same game philosophy.

Smart Gilas overcame Chinese Taipei as the Filipinos shattered the Taiwanese’s zone defense and, at the same time, neutralized their outside shooting.

“We put up a good defense. We forced them to shoot from the dribble in which they’re not good. I think we surprised them,” said Toroman.

But Smart Gilas Phl may need to work harder against South Korea since the Koreans are quicker and better shooters than the Taiwanese.

The Koreans finished second behind the Chinese with a 4-1 win-loss record in Group E. They walloped Uzbekistan, 103-54; smothered Jordan, 95-49; clobbered North Korea, 96-66; lost to China, 66-76; then dumped Mongolia, 115-66.

South Korea is a team with ceiling and quickness. Its core group includes 7-foot-3 behemoth Ha Seung Jin, guards Park Chan Hee and Yang Donggeun and forwards Cho Sungmin, Ham Jihoon and Kim Sung Chul.

The two teams last met in the 2009 Fiba Asia championship in Tianjin where the Koreans also pulled off a come-from-behind win, beating the Filipinos, 82-80, in a fight for seventh place.

The Philippinas won the Asiad gold medal 1951, 1954, 1958 and 1962 while South Korea reigned supreme in 1970, 1982 and 2002.