Brownlee all heart in extra special job

HANGZHOU – Coach Tim Cone wanted something special from Justin Brownlee for the heavyweight showdown against host China last Wednesday at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Centre Gymnasium.

What Brownlee gave his coach was something extra special.

Hitting three-point shots in the face of his taller Chinese defenders, Brownlee delivered the greatest performance so far at the 19th Asian Games here, towing Gilas Pilipinas to a “miraculous” 77-76 come-from-behind win and into the final against Jordan.

Brownlee netted a game-high 33 points spiced by seven three-pointers on a cold Hangzhou evening that will be remembered and talked about for a very long time – especially among the Chinese.

Brownlee was like an arrow that ripped through their hearts.

“It just feels surreal, feels good to be alive, in contention for the gold medal,” said Brownlee, who also delivered the biggest baskets in Gilas’ 84-83 escape act against Iran in the quarterfinals last Tuesday.

The 6-foot-5 Brownlee was all over the court while his Chinese defenders were all over him the entire match.

“They were doubling him, bumping him,” said Cone of the prolific 35-year-old naturalized player.

Yet, Brownlee made the baskets that mattered, including two three-pointers that swished through the net and erased a 76-71 Chinese lead in the final 90 seconds.

The host team was held scoreless in that lonely stretch. In the end, they never knew what hit them.

It was the fighting spirit displayed by Brownlee that carried Gilas through.

With China up by 20 at 52-32 midway in the third period, Scottie Thompson issued an errant pass to Brownlee, who chased the ball and crashed into the baseline, against a row of press photographers.

It took a while for Brownlee to pick himself up. No one assisted him.

That was perhaps what Cone meant as special.

“I don’t know, just keep fighting, keep battling. Coach Tim told us before the game we need to do something special. It was special, special win for us, special game, special effort, special team,” he said.

“Purely heart, purely Filipino heart, puso, that was the main thing that got us back in this game,” he added.

That was special.