Winless Gilas heads to China clash with 'really low' morale

MANILA, Philippines -- Gilas Pilipinas is trying to keep its focus on its last game at the FIBA World Cup against China despite a “really low” morale, head coach Chot Reyes said.

Reyes admitted that the morale of the team is “very, very down” after taking a beating from South Sudan, 87-68, Thursday night.

“There is nothing else we can say, right? The morale is really low. Our job now is to get everyone ready and that has to start with our mindset and our heart set as well,” the coach told reporters after the loss.

The Philippine team is still winless in four games in the World Cup, which is being played at home soil.

Despite the low morale of the team, Reyes stressed he is proud of his players.

“As difficult and as disappointing the campaign has been so far, I’m still very proud of the effort that the guys have, [they] put themselves on the line and fought our best, and unfortunately, things did not go our way,” he said.

“The only thing we can do now is to focus on the next game. There is one more game to be played and we will prepare as well as we can,” he added.

Gilas will be facing China on Saturday night at the Smart Araneta Coliseum, their last game of the tournament.

The tactician said that he will remind the players what they are playing for -- flag and country.

“We’re doing this as our way to serve the country, the Philippines and basically to remind them that it’s more than just a ballgame or just a win, but it’s something larger,” he said.

“Hopefully, ending on a winning note, leaving a lasting impression. We were faced with the exact same situation the last time I coached the world cup in 2014… but we’ll try to put everything together for one last push,” he added.

The coach underscored that while the game on Saturday is technically a no-bearing game, they will still fight for pride and country.

“There’s really no bearing, except for pride, to fight for country, for service, which is exactly why we’re all here in the first place,” he reiterated.

“No matter how difficult this job is, we’re here, we’re doing it and hopefully we can come in and play our best on Saturday,” he added.