Cage dream vanishes

JAKARTA – It was a gold that turned to silver in a blink of an eye as the Philippine women’s cage team blew what could’ve been its greatest moment in the last 1.9 seconds in regulation.

The Discovery Perlas Pilipinas put up one gallant stand after another against the experienced Thais and came within two seconds of a first-ever SEA Games gold until the Thais fired a questionable trey and fortunes shifted in the extra period.

Juthamas Jantakan hit a disputed buzzer-beating triple to force overtime then the Thais nipped the Filipinas, 75-73, to automatically clinch the gold medal with one playdate left in the competition.

The Phl bench and the crowd clearly saw Jantakan step on the line in making the shot but the referees ruled it a trey, giving the Thais the chance to grab the championship in the extension play.

Jantakan later buried crucial free throws to finish off Discovery Perlas Pilipinas in the extra period.

Merenciana Arayi, the seasoned forward who has become the heart and soul of the team, sparked the Filipinas’ swashbuckling finish in regulation but literally threw it all by illegally running away with the victory.

“It was very frustrating,” said Phl coach Haydee Ong, ruing they lost the championship on bad calls in the most crucial part of the game.

The Filipinas settled for first runner-up, matching their best finish in the games in 1995 in Chiang Mai.

The Philippines plays Indonesia at 3 p.m. then Thailand takes on Myanmar at 5 p.m. for mere formality to close the short tourney among five teams.

The Filipinas may end up in a logjam at second with the Malaysians or the Burmese, or both. The Phl team takes the silver on whatever scenario due to a superior quotient.

The silver would have already been a big accomplishment for the Pinays, but not after coming to within 1.8 seconds of the gold.

“The instruction was no three-pointer; all switches on the shooter,” said Ong on their final huddle with the Pinays up by three, 64-61, with 13.7 seconds left.

Jantakan missed her first attempt with Arayi getting the loose ball only to be called an illegal travel with 1.9 seconds left.

Still, the Phl bench and gallery were ready to explode for a big celebration.

Then came Jantakan faking off her defender, taking one step forward and launching a shot that swished through the net at the buzzer.

The Filipinas went silent in disbelief, seeing the tough shot go in then all three refs raise their hands signaling a three-point conversion instead of just a two.

“We all witnessed that she stepped on the line,” cried Ong.

The Filipinas actually still engaged the Thais in a fierce battle in the extension play but eventually yielded with Grajales missing a three-point try and a charity in the last nine seconds.

Frontcourt players Arayi, Analyn Almazan and Maria Lalaine Flormata sparked a rally that had Perlas Pilipinas erasing a nine-point deficit, 47-56, to surge ahead, 59-57, entering the last three minutes of regulation.

The Thais regained upper hand, 61-59, on back-to-back conversions by Juthathip Mathuros and Naruemol Banmoon before the Filipinas gained that 64-61 lead on Arayi’s six straight points.

Arayi fouled out with 1:30 left in overtime.