MANILA, Philippines — Filipinos were overjoyed with the gallant effort by a young Gilas Pilipinas against World No. 5 Serbia in an 83-76 loss in their FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament (OQT) opener in Belgrade on Wednesday (early Thursday morning, Manila time).
But Gilas head coach Tab Baldwin didn't want to dwell too much on an almost-win, even if it was already a big task to have kept the game that close against the basketball powerhouse.
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Known for his no nonsense approach to the game, Baldwin lamented key moments in the ball game where they could've staged the biggest upset in Gilas history.
"A lot of people will look at this as some sort of moral victory. I've been in this game for such a long time that I don't believe in those," said Baldwin after the game.
"We had chances late. We missed good open looks... They were really good looks and they would've put Serbia under even more pressure than they were under late in the game," he added.
Gilas had a one-point advantage over the hosts with 3:50 ticks left in the game, 74-73.
While a bucket from NBA player Boban Marjanovic would make the lead shortlived, the Filipinos had several attempts in trying to take back the advantage.
Ange Kouame, SJ Belangel and Justine Baltazar all couldn't convert on good offensive looks in the final moments of the game that let the win slip away from their fingers.
Baldwin, however, doesn't discount the good from the "moral victory" against the Serbians — charging the loss to experience that will hopefully push the team to be better.
"Sometimes, particularly with a young team, the occassion can be a bit bigger than we are but that is what the learning process is all about," said Baldwin.
"So I was very proud of the effort today. [But] I want to play better than we played and I know that we can play better," he added.
Gilas faces a must-win situation against the Dominican Republic on Thursday (early Friday morning, Manila time) when they lock horns for the chance to move on to the knockout stages of the OQT.
Should Gilas win, they will set up a clash against the winer of Italy-Puerto Rico in the semifinals.