Gilas Pilipinas proves mettle vs Croatia in pulsating OT loss

SEVILLE – Unimaginable. Unbelievable. Unreal.

For ages, that had been the case for the Philippines playing basketball in the world stage until Gilas Pilipinas finally did it, and did it amazingly for the world to see.

Absent in the world meet for 36 long years, the Filipinos celebrated their return with a riveting performance, barely dropping a 78-81 overtime loss to Croatia at the start of the 2014 FIBA World Cup at noon here Saturday.

Gilas Pilipinas could have pulled the rug from under the European power in regulation play but Jeff Chan missed a contested 15-footer from the right flank to the collective oohs and aahs by the huge Filipino cheering crowd at the Palacio Municipal de Deportes San Pablo.

That was a near upset by the Filipinos against the very team considered the favorite to top Group B competition in this quadrennial conclave among the best of the best across the planet.

In overtime, Gilas Pilipinas fought on until Jayson Castro missed a 3-point attempt at the buzzer, allowing Croatia to eventually escape with the tough victory.

For Gilas coach Chot Reyes, the biggest factor was the technical foul the referees called Castro in the dying seconds of the third quarter.

“The refs called a technical foul that I couldn’t believe. The refs said Jason was flopping. The guy is 5-10 and he’s guarding a 6-5, how can that be a flopping?” said Reyes.

“That’s the difference. If not for that technical foul, we could have won the game. The game wouldn’t have gone into overtime,” Reyes pointed out. “The refs called a technical, Croatia made the free throws then made a trey at the buzzer. That’s five points and that’s the difference in the game.”

Trailing by 15 points early on, Gilas Pilipinas came alive and put Croatia on pins and needles on a torrid shooting marked by 10 booming three-pointers in the last three quarters.

“We just kept on fighting. We know Croatia is very tough and we just wanted to keep on fighting,” said Reyes.

“This is for the Filipinos who are here and those watching on TV in the Philippines. We’re gonna be better tomorrow,” said Alapag, proud with the tough stand they put up in the game expected by many to be a rout.

Chan fired away four of six 3-point attempts, Andray Blatche rifled in 3-of-4 while Alapag and Ranidel de Ocampo added one each as the Filipinos charged to tie the game at 37-all then fought the Croatians possession per possession and basket for basket to the very end.

“Yung atmosphere parang Pilipinas at parang 2013 sa MOA. Nakaka-enganyo talaga,” said Chan.

“Noong pumasok yung unang 3-point shot ko, ang ganda na ng feel ko. So tuwing open, without hesitation I was taking the shot,” Chan also said.

Blatche was as confident and as deadly, topscoring with 28 points after draining a fourth and final triple that pushed Gilas to within one at 78-79 with seven seconds to go.

Chan then gave up a quick foul, buying time for Gilas.

Alas, Damjan Rudez made both charities then Castro failed to knock in what could have been a game-tying trey.

Nonetheless, the Nationals left the playing court with heads up to wild cheers by the Filipino crowd and the adulation of the international media.

Blatche also came through with 12 rebounds and one steal as against seven turnovers and three fouls in 41 minutes of action. Chan contributed 17 points while Marc Pingris added 10 markers, four rebounds, one assist and one steal.

Forwards Bojan Bogdanovic and Dario Saric led the Croatians with 26 and 10 points, respectively.

Heading to the dugout at halftime, the Nationals were high-fiving and chest-pumping as they kept the Croatians within striking distance at 31-37.

They found their range towards the end of the second quarter, narrowing a 15-point spread with a key run fueled by two three-pointers by Chan and a rare four-point play by Alapag.

Jittery at the start, the Filipinos hit at a miserable 4-of-19 (21 percent) field shooting in the first quarter, including 0-of-4 tries from beyond the arc.

The Croatians nearly got the surprise of their lives when Gilas Pilipinas got into the groove and fought with tremendous guts.

The scores:

Croatia 81 – Bogdanovic 26, Simon 12, Saric 10, Tomic 8, Ukic 5, Markota 5, Rudez 4, Zoric 4, Lafayette 4, Babic 3.

Philippines 78 – Blatche 28, Chan 17, Pingris 10, Castro 6, De Ocampo 5, Alapag 4, Tenorio 2, Lee 2, Fajardo 2, Norwood 2, Aguilar 0.

Quarterscores: 23-9, 37-31, 57-49, 71-71 (Reg.), 81-78 (OT)