Baldwin: Gilas win over Korea 'great moment' for Filipino basketball
MANILA, Philippines — Filipino basketball fans celebrated "breaking the curse" Wednesday night after an all-cadet Gilas Pilipinas eked out a cardiac win over rivals South Korea in the FIBA Asia Cup qualifiers set in Clark.
Even current Gilas head coach Tab Baldwin couldn't downplay just how big the victory was — a victory that ended an eight-year drought of wins against the Koreans and qualified the Philippines to the FIBA Asia Cup.
Speaking to the media after the game, the multi titled tactician raved about the moment his Ateneo ward in SJ Belangel banked in the off-balance 3-pointer at the buzzer to propel Gilas to the win, 81-78.
SJ FTW! ????
— One Sports (@OneSportsPHL) June 16, 2021
Wagi ang Gilas Pilipinas ???????? kontra South Korea ????????81-78 sa 2021 FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers dahil sa game-winning three ni SJ Belangel!#FIBAAsiaCup pic.twitter.com/J3D0XfehtO
"It's a great moment for Filipino basketball," said Baldwin.
"I think it's a just reward for the work that these young fellas have put in. It was a great game of basketball," he added.
Baldwin admitted that the young Gilas squad, which was led by collegiate stars Belangel, Dwight Ramos and Angelo Kouame, needed to adjust against the more experienced South Korean side.
Gilas even saw a deficit as big as 17 points in the first half. But the 63-year-old was thankful for his cagers that were able to tweak their game accordingly to play at pace with their opponents.
"We were shocked at the beginning of the game with the physicality of Korea and it gave us a hard time... We didn't have a good first quarter but then we talked about it and we just started grinding and we started trying to respond to the physicality and tried to hold our own," said Baldwin.
"I think, you know, guys came off the bench did a great job [and] guys that played the minutes just did a great job and we fought our way back... It could've been anybody's game," he added.
Despite the fairly young age of his lineup, Baldwin is sure of the mark that the all-cadet Gilas has already left in Philippine basketball lore.
Not only will the players never forget that moment, but the fans as well.
"There's going to be a great deal of excitement for these young men, there's no question about that. They'll remember that for a long time," said Baldwin.
Baldwin and the Gilas cadets face Indonesia next on Friday at 6 p.m.
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