It was about 11 years ago when the concept of sports writing was first introduced to me. At that time, I was still this 5th grade student who knew just a bit of the sports world. I was just a sideline witness to my father watching NBA games. I was cheering for Allen Iverson when he almost single-handedly carried the Philadelphia 76ers to the NBA Finals only to be overmatched by the O’neal/Bryant-led Lakers. Dad was once a newspaper writer so he really was the one who urged me to join our school’s student publication. It was pure luck that I passed the school paper examination though. I knew from there that I was accepted for the reason that the adviser knew about my father being a former writer. But well, life has to go on, let’s move on. I was assigned to be the sportswriter and from there everything went crazy.
I instantly became an avid sports fan. Whenever my father watches ESPN or Star Sports, I was there in a corner witnessing everything myself. I watched how Tiger Woods would dominate PGA tours but still Phil Mickelson and Ernie Els would pose threats. The year I started out being a sports fanatic also became the year I had a big heartbreak.
The South Korean Tormentors
It is still fresh to my memory as to how I wrote my story after the Philippine Basketball Team coached by Jong Uichico narrowly lost to home-team South Korea in the Asian Games. It was a buzzer-beating trey which broke the hearts of Filipino fans all over the world. Lots of Filipinos cried for the great reversal which denied Philippines of a championship showdown with the Chinese squad.
In 2009, where I was already a high school student writer, the South Koreans once again delivered another stunning defeat to the Filipinos with a 82-80 breakway win which relegated Philippines to 8th place. I was not able to watch the game but I read various newspapers regarding the game. I just couldn’t take the disappointment of another repeat at the hands of the South Koreans.
But that wasn’t the last devastating loss for the Filipinos as our frequent tormentors reiterated the experience two years later rallying in the fourth quarter to steal the bronze medal from Smart-Gilas Pilipinas in the 2011 staging of the FIBA Asia Championship. Prior to that, I was convinced that with JV Casio and Marcus Douthit leading the charge, our national team would be able to end the so-called purse. I was wrong and deeply hurt.
FIBA Asia 2013 in the Philippines
With the Philippines given the chance to host the FIBA Asia Championship 2013, I was convinced that our chances of finishing better increased exponentially. It is a fact that Filipinos treasure and love basketball so much. Some even argue that it has already become as our national sport because of the passion we have for it. I can even recall my professor describing the life of Filipinos as PBA (Pulitika, Basketball, Artista). It’s quite funny but it speaks a lot of Filipino realities. Basketball has been an integral part of the lives of Filipinos.
First Round
vs. Saudi Arabia
It was the opening day. I knew Saudi Arabia was the first opponent for Gilas in the FIBA Asia so I had no worries. I’m not underestimating SA, I just know what our team is capable of. I was convinced that this game is a good match-up as this will serve as their warm-up for the international tournament. With the roster we have, I was confident we will breeze through this first round undefeated. To my surprise, when I sat in front of the television in our dormitory’s lobby, Philippines was trailing Saudi Arabia.
I was in a loss of words for what the scoreboard showed. I kept on shouting curse words with the game calling and the way our Gilas played the match. In the end, our team prevailed and we accepted the ugly win.
vs. Jordan
Showing a rusty performance in their opening game, much was expected of the team as they battle Jordan. They displayed a much better performance than yesterday. It was not a perfect game but Gilas came out with the win against a team which finished second in the 2011 staging. Their performance is getting better game after game.
vs. Chinese Taipei
It was a battle of the undefeated in Group A. The hot shooting Taiwanese Team exploded early and took a 30-19 lead at the end of the opening period. I was in a state of shock as I witness Taipei knockdown trey after trey. Their shooting from beyond the arc was torrid and unstoppable.
Gilas cooled them off in the third quarter and launched their own spirited run to pull away by thirteen entering the pay-off period. But the Filipinos ran out of gas in the final canto handing the Chinese-Taipei squad the top spot in Group A with an escape win.
Second round:
vs. Japan
Many fans were waiting when will their home team be able to deliver a lopsided win in the tournament. It finally came when Gilas came head to head with Japan. They battled with intense physicality against their East Asian counterparts to deliver their best game so far. Winning by 19 points, the crowd was in frenzy.
vs. Qatar
It was a must-win for Gilas against Qatar as this was their last hope of securing the top spot in the second round and avoid an early showdown with powerhouse teams like Iran, China or South Korea in the quarterfinals. Once again, their third quarter magic worked to post a balloon entering the final canto.
But everybody went nervous when naturalized-center Marcus Douthit fell down on the floor in pain. He was holding on to his right knee. He was subbed out and the Qataris used the momentum to cut down the lead into a single digit deficit which was highest at 23. Not to be outdone, the Filipinos’ resiliency was showcased as Douthit, who was visibly walking on one foot, came back to weather the rally of the Qataris. Gilas won by 10 points.
vs HongKong
After witnessing Qatar eke out a pulsating 71-68 win against their first round tormentors Chinese-Taipei, Gilas was pumped up to win against HongKong and secure the top spot in Group E. They needed just a win to arrange a quarterfinals showdown against Kazakshtan who finished fourth in Group F.
Everybody was again caught off-guard and left in awe as the visiting HongKong Team pulled ahead by 10 in the opening period. A walk in the park win turned into a tightly fought ballgame 'til the final quarter. Douthit, who was supposed to play fewer minutes because of his injury, went out for more than 30 minutes to carry his team who was visibly not in sync all throughout. It was another ugly win but we’ll have to take it.
Quarterfinals versus Kazakhstan
It was the first knockout game for Gilas Pilipinas. Everybody was anxious as a loss would deny us of a ticket to the FIBA World Championship next year. I myself was worried of how the game would go knowing that the opposing team delivered a good performance against ours in their tune-up game before the tournament opened. Everything was erased as Gilas cruised to a 30-point manhandling of Kazakhstan who succumbed to pressure brought by the home crowd. It was the best game so far by the boys and a good momentum going into the semi-finals.
Semi-finals versus South Korea
This game meant a lot not only for the Gilas Team, but for every Filipino with the love for basketball around the world. My memories of the past decade came back to me and I became very nervous. I greatly anticipated this game. I even declared that a fitting end would be for Gilas to win against South Korea, go to the finals and beat the hell out of Chinese-Taipei. Double revenge done. But I was very worried and almost couldn’t afford to watch the game because of the extreme feeling I had inside.
The close game added to the tension surrounding every Filipino watching the game blow-by-blow. I was all shout and curses as third quarter played through. Marcus was injured once more late in the second quarter which added more pressure to the home team. But we played with a big heart. We stood our own fighting with our all-Filipino line-up against a taller South Korean Team. I shouted every three-point basket counted for the Philippines and would crack jokes whenever South Korea makes one. It was a heart-stopping game.
Finally, Jimmy Alapag hit a dagger trey which made everyone stand up and shout for joy. Moments later, Marc Pingris would score a putback to finally seal the win and end the South Korean curse. I almost cried as did others in the lobby. Millions rejoiced with the meaningful win. Not only have we ended the curse, we also qualified for the FIBA World Championship and will be finishing our best ever for a long period of time. It was as if we have won the gold medal already. Even Mico Halili and Richard del Rosario were teary-eyed after the sensational win by the Gilas Pilipinas Team. Hands down. All Hail Gilas.
Championship showdown vs. Iran
I was firm that Philippines would be champions again and be the kings of basketball in Asia. We fought a close first half behind a resilient squad who hustled and fought all heart. We were undersized. We were the underdogs but we pushed the Iranians to the limit.
It was a forgettable second half. I was in distress over the game calling. Whenever we start to mount a comeback, the referees would then stop it by calling fouls on our Gilas. Despite such bad luck late in the game, I still hail Gilas as the champions as they played their hearts out. We had a couple of bad breaks and missed the services of Douthit in the Finals but we were able to send an impression to Iran and all through out Asia of our strength as a team. Iranian center Hamed Haddadi even declared Gilas as their strongest opponent in the tournament.
One Gilas. One Team. One country.
The win was more than just bringing back Philippines to the basketball world map. It was a unifying event. Many Filipino fans flocked the MOA Arena to cheer for their home team. They would shout for every basket counted and cheer their hearts out to help the team push forward. Even those watching at home or anywhere knew that this was not just a tournament, this fight was the fight of the whole country.
Gilas showed what Filipinos are made of. We may have fought the battle wounded but we leaned on our heart to overcome all obstacles. We were underdogs but we exceeded all expectations. The hustling of Pingris showed how courageous we are. The comeback of Gary David from a long shooting slump depicted how Filipinos rise up from every doom. Marcus Douthit playing with one foot showed our bravery in times of critical battles. The resiliency of the team echoed the character of every Filipino. Nothing else. Gilas is our team. We are one Gilas, one team, one country.
