TIME TO MOVE ON
It was already going to be a big game, what with the ugly moment that links the histories of both teams.
But the Philippines fell short against New Zealand, 69-66, in a Fiba World Cup Asian qualifying match at the Mall of Asia Arena on Tuesday.
And that adds even more spice to Gilas Pilipinas’ duel vs Australia on Sunday.
“We gotta work hard. We gotta work doubly hard,” Cone said as the Filipinos now set their sights on the Australians, who are playing in the country for the first time since the ugly brawl that marred their World Cup qualification game eight years earlier.
Cone took no joy in the national squad’s first defeat in Group A of the qualifiers, insisting that there were no silver linings to focus on.
“Bottom line, we’re not gonna take pride in getting close,” he said. “We showed up to win, and we didn’t do that.”
Gilas fell behind by 11 after tying the count at the half. CJ Perez and Dwight Ramos led a spirited last-ditch rally that came up short in the end when Ramos missed a three-pointer before the horn.
“All I can think right now are my mistakes. I feel bad,” Ramos said amid chaotic scenes at the mixed zone area filled with reporters and fans. “Gotta move on.”
Massive result
Moving on means the bid to come up with a grand scheme to secure a massive result against Australia on Sunday at the same venue. The Boomers are favorites to prevail, with a perfect 3-0 record in the first round.
Australia walloped the Jericho Cruz-led Guam, 93-80, in the other Group A match.
“It was a close game, so obviously there was a lot to learn,” Ramos said.
The Philippines had a chance to make it to the next round with a victory. Gilas will now shoot for that win in a game that is already teeming with subplots, given the infamous fracas that took place in a July 2018 game at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan.
And that incident has resurfaced courtesy of an Australian media outfit, which unearthed an old clip of Australia basketball legend Shane Heal expressing his sentiments on the brawl.
Fox Sports Basketball even put out a caption on the 90-second clip, describing the upcoming matchup between the two countries as “Basketbrawl 2.0.”
“The amount of coward punches that happened, coming off the bench and just lining up our guys up and punching them in the back of the head. [It was] Scary stuff,” Heal said in that video that aired in a now-defunct show, “The Back Page” after the brawl.
On the other hand, Filipinos do not expect a “Basketbrawl” sequel, with then-Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas president Al Panlilio saying last year that the SBP and Basketball Australia have since “moved on.”
“That was the past. We understand that. We learn from that,” Panlilio said. “Just play basketball.”
Australia had actually played Gilas last August at the Fiba Asia Cup in Saudi Arabia, handily routing the Filipinos, 84-60, in the quarterfinals—minus any tensions from the Bulacan melee.
But this is both teams’ first game in the country since that controversial match.
Ramos had 16 points and eight rebounds while Perez scored 15 points in the defeat. Gilas dropped to 2-1.
Justin Brownlee could only put up four points, his lowest since donning the Gilas jersey.
******
Get real-time news updates: inqnews.net/inqviber
