Gilas showcases team work, takes down mighty Iran

Games Tuesday:

9:30 a.m. – Palestine vs Iran

11:45 a.m. – Japan vs Hong Kong

2:30 p.m. – Philippines vs India

4:45 p.m. – Lebanon vs Jordan

7:30 p.m. – China vs Qatar

9:30 p.m. — South Korea vs Kazakhstan

CHANGSHA – Gilas Pilipinas unleashed great individual talents putting in tremendous effort together to end Iran’s long unbeaten run with a rousing 87-73 triumph in the 2015 FIBA Asia Championship at the Changsha Social Work College Gymnasium here on Monday.

Jayson Castro, Terrence Romeo, Calvin Abueva and Andray Blatche all put in wondrous show as the Filipinos humbled the Iranians and put themselves in a good position to be the top seed from their group in the knockout stage of this regional Olympic qualifier.

“This game was won by individuals playing as a team. It doesn’t make sense to those who don’t know Philippine basketball. But today, we really exploit the excellent individual skills of our players,” said Gilas coach Tab Baldwin.

Castro lived up to his reputation as Asia’s best guard, Romeo and Abueva proved they can compete with the best of them in the region while Blatche simply outsmarted and outplayed Iranian prized 7-foot-2 center Hamed Haddadi.

Ranidel de Ocampo, Marc Pingris, Dondon Hontiveros and Gabe Norwood played their roles on defense as Gilas Pilipinas handed Iran its first defeat in the biennial Asian joust since an upset by Jordan during the quarterfinals in 2011 in Wuhan.

“In all honesty, we’ve been preparing for Iran for a long time. The guys know the Iran game is critical in terms of placing in the quarterfinals. That’s our investment and that’s kicking in,” said Baldwin.

“We didn’t want to fritter away our investment. The mental preparation was there and it spawned right attitude. We started thinking Iran about a month ago,” Baldwin added.

If they do finish first and second in Group E, the Philippines and Iran play the fourth seed and the third seed, respectively, from Group F in the Final Eight.

“Yes, we’re trying to have that first spot. If we do a good job (against India Tuesday), it looks like we will have that, and that will be good for us,” said Baldwin.

Castro, Romeo, Abueva and Blatche dealt Iran tremendous beating in the second half as the Nationals overcame a 10-point deficit to score a first win over the Middle East power since their 2012 Jones Cup championship run.

Castro, the Best Guard in the 2013 Asian joust and in the last Jones Cup, sparkled with a game-high 26 points while Blatche, Romeo and Abueva added 18, 15 and 13, respectively.

Despite a slight ankle sprain sustained the previous day, Blatche also came through with seven rebounds, four steals, two blocks and one assist.

The nine-year NBA veteran proved to be a big thorn to Iran, easing the Iranians’ huge advantage in the shaded lane.

Blatche, Castro, Romeo and Abueva beat the Iranians with their quicker pace, negating Nikkha Bahrami’s 21 points and the Iranians’ 11-of-24 3-pointers.

Gilas had its own three-point bombs with Norwood, Hontiveros and Romeo combining for four straight treys in a key stretch allowing the Filipinos to move ahead at 58-57.

Then from a 71-67 count, Abueva and Blatche teamed up in a seven-to-nothing binge as Gilas seized full control at 80-67.

“This is what you hope for in this tournament -- a great game. There was an ebb and flow to it as Iran played tough in the first half, and we had a hard time staying in front of them,” said Baldwin whose troops played catch-up basketball in the major part of the first three quarters.

The scores:

Pilipinas 87 – William 26, Blatche 18, Romeo 15, Abueva 13, Norwood 5, de Ocampo 5, Hontiveros 3, Taulava 2, Intal 0, Pingris 0, Ganuelas 0, Thoss 0,

Iran 73 – Bahrami 21, Masyakeyvi 11, Kamrani 11, Haddadi 10, Davari 9, Jamshidijafarabadi 7, Davarpanahfard 2, Hassanzadeh 2, Yahchalidehkordi 0, Afagh 0, Sahakian 0.

Quarterscores: 22-25; 43-37; 65-60; 87-73