Douthit would’ve made a difference

No doubt about it, Marcus Douthit would’ve severely challenged Iran’s stratospheric Hamed Haddadi if only Gilas’ naturalized player suited up in the 27th FIBA-Asia title game at the Mall of Asia Arena last Sunday.

Douthit’s injury woes began when the Philippines beat Qatar, 80-70, in the second round of eliminations last Aug. 6. He banged his shin bone against a knee during an undergoal battle and limped off the court. Coach Chot Reyes wanted to rest him in the next game against Hong Kong but Douthit had to play 31:30 minutes out of necessity as Gilas scrambled back from a five-point halftime deficit to ice it down the stretch.

The rest day before the knockout quarterfinals was a relief for Douthit who was declared ready to battle Kazakhstan last Aug. 9. That was the big game of the tournament for Gilas because a loss would’ve ended the dream of playing at the FIBA World Cup in Spain next year. Before the contest, Gilas assistant coach Norman Black assured that Douthit was good to go. Douthit didn’t want to make excuses and like a gladiator, went to war despite throbbing pain in his right leg. He wasn’t a factor in offense, contributing only five points, but grabbed 10 rebounds in 22:53 minutes of courageous play. Douthit also collected two assists and two blocked shots. More than anything else, Douthit provided the emotional lift that led to the Philippines’ incredible 88-58 rout of Kazakhstan.

Against South Korea in the semifinals, Douthit’s leg was all taped up. He bravely competed against all odds. Then the final blow fell like a thunder strike. Douthit went up for an offensive rebound following his own miss and came down hard on his foot. In all, he played just 13:14 minutes, went scoreless on 0-of-5 attempts from the floor but managed three rebounds and two blocked shots. The tournament was over for Douthit. But instead of sulking in lamenting Douthit’s fate, Reyes’ locals picked up the cudgels, rose to the occasion and crushed South Korea, 86-79, to finally slay the ghosts of tournaments past.

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Walking out of the stadium, Douthit said he gave it his all, that it was an incredible feeling to be part of a historic team that brought the Philippines back to the FIBA World Cup for the first time since Manila hosted the event in 1978. Tears welled in his eyes, partly because of the excrutiating pain in his leg, partly because he knew he couldn’t play in the finals the next day and partly because he wept for joy. Douthit had done his job. He was brought in for a purpose and Reyes created the environment that guaranteed success in achieving the objective. The goal was to make it to Spain and it was mission accomplished.

Right before the gold medal match, Gilas team manager Butch Antonio said there was little chance Douthit would play. “He’s hurting badly,” said Antonio. “There’s no fracture, no broken bones. But Marcus feels like his leg was banged by a paddle. The swelling is very deep. The pain is almost unbearable. He’ll suit up, he wants to play but I don’t know if he can.”

Without Douthit in harness, Haddadi had a field day in powering Iran to the gold medal at the host country’s expense, 85-71. It was a lot closer than what the final score indicated. Gilas surged ahead, 36-35, early in the third period but Iran recoiled to unleash a 10-0 barrage and was never seriously threatened again. Iran repeatedly turned to Haddadi, a five-year NBA veteran with Memphis and Phoenix, to stave off the Philippines in the second half surge. In the third period, Haddadi had eight points on 3-of-4 field goals and 2-of-2 free throws as Iran outpointed Gilas, 27-19. It was next to impossible to put the clamps on the 7-2 mastadon. Reyes went to JuneMar Fajardo, Japeth Aguilar and Ranidel de Ocampo in the middle but if they managed to stand up on defense in the lane alternating on Haddadi, point guard Mahdi Kamrany got himself open. Kamrany shot nine points in the third.

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The Philippines made a final push in the fourth quarter but Haddadi proved to be unstoppable down the stretch. Although huffing and puffling, Haddadi had more than enough in his tank to bring down Gilas. If Douthit played, Haddadi would’ve gassed out for sure. He erupted for 10 points in the last 10 minutes as Kamrany set him up for back passes in drives to the hole. Douthit would’ve blocked Haddadi’s entry with his inside presence. Haddadi finished with four fouls even if Fajardo and Aguilar did little on offense. If Douthit played, he would’ve definitely been aggressive in attacking the basket and Haddadi would’ve been pushed to the limit.

Haddadi finished with 29 points and 16 rebounds in 29:06 minutes. He shot 12-of-15 field goals for a lofty clip of 80 percent, meaning there was little Gilas could do to stop his offense. Douthit would’ve made a difference. If Haddadi scored half of what he did against Gilas, the Philippines would’ve had a huge chance to capture the gold. That’s how much Douthit meant to the team.

Iran had the lion’s share of second chance points, 14-2, rebounds, 51-34 and points in the paint, 54-22. It was obvious that Slovenian coach Memi Becirovic relied only on a small nucleus as Gilas’ bench badly outscored the Iran relievers, 46-6. But Becirovic knew what buttons to push. Haddadi was Iran’s key to victory, nobody else. The Philippines could’ve probably won with Douthit in uniform.