Blatche apologizes to teammates

MANILA, Philippines — Naturalized import Andray Blatche apologized to his Gilas teammates for a lackluster showing in the Philippines’ 90-83 win over Chinese-Taipei to end the first two-game, home-and-away qualifying window in the eliminations for the 2019 FIBA World Cup at the Smart Araneta Coliseum the other night.

Blatche, 31, looked downcast, sitting in his cubicle in the Araneta dressing room when he made his apology. He struggled offensively and shot a lowly 2-of-9 field goals, missing all five tries from beyond the arc, but finished with 14 rebounds, three assists and five blocked shots, three in the fourth period. Blatche also had a game-high six turnovers.

“That wasn’t me out there,” said Blatche. “Those weren’t my numbers. I could’ve put more on the table.” Then, Blatche pointed a finger to JuneMar Fajardo across the room, congratulating the PBA’s four-time reigning MVP for his dominance in the game. Fajardo filled in for Blatche on the firing end, scoring 17 points on 7-of-12 field goals.

Gilas head coach Chot Reyes said on the team, everyone watches each other’s back and mentioned that while Blatche sputtered on offense, he still contributed to the win. Reyes credited Blatche for his five blocked shots, drawing cheers from the team that appreciated the nine-year NBA veteran’s gesture of humility. In Gilas’ 77-71 win over Japan in Tokyo last Friday, Blatche had 13 points, 12 rebounds, five assists and six turnovers.

Blatche was scheduled to leave for China to rejoin his Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) club Xinjiang yesterday. He skipped the first seven games of the CBA season, recovering from a slight tear in his right hamstring, then averaged 26.5 points, 11.5 rebounds, 3 assists, 2.5 blocked shots and 2 steals in back-to-back contests before returning to the Gilas fold. Xinjiang’s record is 6-3 so far under Latvian coach Igors Miglinieks, 4-3 without Blatche. Xinjiang’s next game is on Dec. 1.

Blatche confirmed that he’ll play for Gilas in the next two qualifying windows where the Philippines takes on Australia on the road on Feb. 22, Japan at home on Feb. 25, Chinese-Taipei on the road on June 29and Australia at home on July 2. There are no CBA games scheduled during the windows to allow Chinese players to suit up for the national team. China, as host country, is seeded outright at the 32-nation World Cup in 2019 but is competing in the qualifiers just the same.    

Team captain Gabe Norwood led a thanksgiving prayer in the dressing room then Gilas went off to Barrio Fiesta at Ali Mall for a dinner sponsored by Chooks To Go. The team arrived from Tokyo last Saturday and was quartered at the Novotel Hotel beside the Big Dome.

Watching last Monday’s game from the stands was Terrence Romeo who led Gilas in scoring with an 18.8 clip at the FIBA Asia Cup in Lebanon last August. He injured his right knee during the competitions and begged off from playing in the first qualifying window. Romeo is now undergoing therapy and ruled out playing in the PBA until early next year. He said he’ll try out to reclaim his spot on the Gilas roster and hopes to play in the second qualifying window.