WCup elims runneth over with Asia’s best

MANILA, Philippines - The 2013 FIBA World Championship teems with challenges for all the teams competing in the 27th FIBA Asia Championship that fires off tomorrow at the Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay and Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Manila.

The consensus is that a bunch of high-quality teams under top-notch coaches – not just two or three – are contenders for the three World Cup berths staked in this continental elimination meet.  

While titleholder China and two-time champion Iran are considered the heavy favorites, Gilas Pilipinas, South Korea, Qatar, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Japan and Chinese Taipei are the other teams mentioned with a legitimate chance for a Top Three finish.

During the pre-Asia championship press conference at the MOA Arena yesterday, everyone was saying the proliferation of naturalized players and foreign coaches has raised the quality of Asian basketball and put parity in the FIBA Asia competition.

This is the very case in the 2013 Asian meet where eight teams are reinforced by a naturalized player and eight sides competing under a foreign coach.

Coaches said the key is to make the Final Four where anything can happen.

“That’s the beauty of the tournament format. Beyond the quarters, it’s unpredictable. Any team can beat any team. Parity has leveled the playing field,” said Gilas Pilipinas coach Chot Reyes.

“There’s a bunch of strong teams in this competition. The key is to get off strong in the elimination round. It will help you a lot in the knockout stage,” said Iran coach Memi Becirovic, a Slovenian.

“Seven to eight teams are really strong. All the games will be tough, and the quarterfinals is the most important,” said Jordan team manager Zuhair Fuad Nassar.

The Chinese are keeping their cards close to their chest, just promising to play their best for the crowd and their own cause.

Kazakhstan coach Matteo Boniciolli, an Italian, said the Philippines is a strong title contender, being a good team playing on its home court.

“It’s a quality team with good preparation. And the country’s passion for the game is a great plus. Basketball here is unbelievable. They would have 15,000 people pushing them, and that would be a great energy,” said Boniciolli, whose team faced Gilas Pilipinas in a warm-up game at the Smart Araneta Coliseum Friday.

With guarded optimism, Reyes said he does feel they have a good chance to make the Final Four.

But he insisted there would be no single game that is going to be easy.

“It would really be difficult. The tourney would feature not only quality teams but also quality coaching. That’s how to emphasize the strong field. Sa Tagalog, walang itulak kabigin,” he said.

“As for our team, everybody knows what we’ve gone through. We’ve made the most of the time given us. This team would come out fighting tooth and nail,” he also said.

While lacking height and heft, Reyes said they would bank on skills, desire and crowd support as they seek to bring the country back in the world championship for the first time since 1978.

As for the tremendous pressure they would face playing on home soil, Reyes said: “We acknowledge the pressure so we can embrace it.”

Reyes and his troops have gotten words of wisdom from Philippine basketball living legend Robert Jaworski about it.

“He said let’s us embrace the privilege, go out have fun and enjoy this once-in-a-lifetime experience. That’s gonna be our mindset,” said Reyes.

“We know it’s very tough, but we’ll find a way to enjoy the experience,” he added.

Gilas Pilipinas, a five-time Asian champ, starts quest for a sixth crown in taking on Saudi Arabia at 8:30 p.m. tomorrow at the MOA Arena. Other opening-day games in the Pasay venue pit Iran versus Malaysia at 11 a.m., Jordan opposite Chinese Taipei at 1:15 p.m., Japan against Qatar at 3:30 p.m., China versus Korea at 5:45 p.m. and Kazakhstan opposite Thailand at 10:30 p.m. The lone game at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium pits India versus Bahrain.

Next up for the Filipinos are the Jordanians on Friday then the Taiwanese Saturday.