Gilas rookie Moala Tautuaa still adjusting to FIBA rules

MANILA, Philippines – Fil-Tongan Moala Tautuaa had his breakthrough game in the William Jones Cup during Gilas Pilipinas’ 75-60 win over Japan on Wednesday.

Tautuaa finished the game with 10 points and six rebounds, no doubt, his best performance in a Gilas uniform after running into foul trouble during his first three games in the annual cage tournament held in Taipei.

But this year’s top PBA rookie pick was the first to admit that his explosive performance in the second half against the Japanese didn’t come easy, owing to the adjustments he had to undergo while representing the Philippines in international competitions for the first time.

The 26-year-old Tautuaa cited officiating and just the overall feel of playing under FIBA rules are just some of the things he had to adjust as a Gilas player.

“Basketball is basketball. The only difference is the refs. Those are what you have to adjust to,” Tautuaa told Philstar.com on Friday.

Although he was a dominant force during the PBA D-League Foundation Cup that saw him earn the tournament MVP, he did admit that international tournaments like the Jones Cup, where Fiba rules are applied, is played differently.

“PBA D-League and FIBA are a different style. And you can tell we are struggling,” he said. “But it's all part of the game we have to adjust.”

The bearded big man out of Chadron State said the game against Korea drained his energy due to the constant screens he had to fight through in order to defend the outside gunners of the Filipinos’ Asian basketball nemesis.

“I've been playing a lot of tough players. But it's the screens and movement that make it hard. So Korea was the most draining because they had an outside game and a ton of screens to follow,” he recalled.

But Tautuaa said it didn’t matter if he had to guard bigger and more experienced Asian players like Ha Seungjin of South Korea or Iran’s Hamed Haddadi, both standing at 7-foot-3, saying Gilas coach Tab Baldwin has always emphasized the importance of playing solid team defense.

“Players are all a mental thing. And we go over that during film, but defense is a team thing,” stressed the wide-bodied Fil-Tongan, who is filling in Andray Blatche as Gilas’ naturalized player.

At 3-2, Gilas Pilipinas is already out of contention for the Jones Cup title following the team’s 74-65 loss to mighty Iran on Thursday.

But the Filipinos hope to bounce back Friday when they collide with the Wellington Saints of New Zealand at 1 p.m.