Gilas unmasks nemesis Iran

CHANGSHA – Gilas Pilipinas played with heart when hurt, harnessed its vaunted individual skills into one deadly unit, made a potent blend of the old and the new and reduced its once giant source of heartaches into a foul-ridden harmless behemoth at endgame.

When it was over, the Nationals have broken the Iranian jinx, 87-73, in the 2015 FIBA Asia Championship at the Changsha Social Work College Gymnasium here yesterday.

Jayson Castro, Terrence Romeo, Calvin Abueva and Andray Blatche worked into a cohesive, combustible crew that kept the initiative for Gilas at the onset of the second half as the team closed in on one of the two top berths 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 (yesterday), we really exploited 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 were fast making their  roles as vital components of Gilas’ game on both ends of the court while Blatche simply outsmarted and outplayed Iranian prized 7-foot-2 center Hamed Haddadi.

Ranidel de Ocampo, Marc Pingris, Dondon Hontiveros and Gabe Norwood provided the muscle and hustle in 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.

Meanwhile, Japan and India caught up with Palestine at third place in Group E at 2-2 as the Japanese toppled the Palestinians, 74-67, while the Indians topped the Hong Kong Chinese, 76-71.

“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 today), 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 playing with a slight ankle sprain he 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 three-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.