Jordan blocks Gilas path to finals

WUHAN – Smart Gilas Pilipinas, a win away from the gold-medal game, found Jordan too huge to overcome on its way to the throne and a possible trip to the London Olympics.

The Nationals couldn’t establish the rhythm and neither could they shake off the Jordanians’ methodical defense in a 61-75 loss in the semifinals of the 26th FIBA Asia Championship at the Wuhan Sports Centre here last night.

Their aspiration to play in the Asian meet finals for the first time in 25 years went with the bricks the Smart Gilas shooters threw in the air.

Marcio Lassiter, Chris Tiu and Jimmy Alapag combined for 0-of-21 shooting – a nightmare that couldn’t come in a worse time.

Jordan proved its quarterfinal win over two-time defending champion Iran was no fluke as it advanced to the finals versus the winner of the China-Korea semis tiff.

With their first loss in six games, the Nationals were relegated to the fight for third.

It’s still a big game, though, since the third placer here earns a slot in the wild card tourney for the Olympics.

“We’re not mentally ready,” rued Smart Gilas coach Rajko Toroman.

“The exact opposite happened on all things we had wanted. We played really bad. Our shooters couldn’t hit their shots. Marcus (Douthit) scored 21 points but he committed six turnovers,” Toroman pointed out.

Jordan coach Thomas Baldwin said they’re able to handle Smart Gilas well since it’s almost similar to the Iranian team.

“There are a lot of similarities between Iran and the Philippines. Marcus (Douthit) is a force in the middle much like Hamed Haddadi, and they have tenacious guards who give you a lot of problem with their tough defense,” said Baldwin.

“Low shooting percentage is indication of the tough defense. We dug deep. We’re the more experienced team and I think it also factored,” Baldwin added.

The Jordanians evidently defended better, holding the Nationals to a poor 31-percent shooting.

Jordan toughened up on defense after Smart Gilas started stronger, establishing an eight-point lead in the first quarter.

“We’re sloppy at the start, but then our experience later kicked in. We played hard and stuck together, and came out on top in the end,” said Rasheim Wright, the naturalized Jordanian player who led his team with 24 points, three rebounds, one assist and one steal.

Asian meet veterans Osama Daghles and Zaid Abbas also played key roles, firing away clutch baskets to help Jordan cut loose from a 49-48 edge.

Falling behind by six at 48-54, Smart Gilas shifted into zone defense that backfired, opening up Abbas and Daghles for dagger back-to-back treys.

There was no stopping the Jordanians from there even as the Nationals applied a full-court press in the last three minutes.

“We’re in the game until the last five minutes. We tried to surprise them with a zone but they’re too experienced,” said Toroman.

The Jordanians converted only 29 percent of their three-pointers but made it in opportune time.

Jordan is seeing action in the Asian final for the first time ever. It narrowly missed it and had to settle for third in Tianjin in 2009.

“We don’t want to be satisfied. We want to win it all. That’s what we came here for,” said Baldwin.

With a better start, the Nationals took the first quarter at 18-12 and the half at 28-17.

The Nationals looked to have built momentum in taking an eight-point lead in the first half only to taper off and fall behind at 22-24.

 The scores:

Jordan 75 – Wright 24, Daghles 16, Abbas 14, Abuqoura 9, Jamal 5, Abbaas 5, Al-Sous 2, Alkhas 0, Hussein 0, Soobzokov 0.

Philippines 61 – Douthit 21, Casio 15, De Ocampo 8, Williams 6, Lutz 4, Barroca 4, Lassiter 2, Alapag 1, Taulava 0, Tiu 0.

Quarterscores: 12-18, 27-28, 49-41, 75-61