Gilas stamps class vs Bahrain

HANGZHOU – The loudest cheers on this relatively quiet day for Team Philippines in the 19th Asian Games were those for Gilas Pilipinas.

Starring Justin Brownlee, a resident import in the PBA with the heart of a Filipino, the Gilas basketball team clobbered Bahrain, 89-61, at the start of its ambitious campaign here.

It was a resounding victory for Gilas, which led by as many as 34 points and was never really in trouble despite the tight opening minutes.

Filipinos came to see the most popular team in the Philippine delegation. They waved their flags and called the players by their names cheering from the stands.

In the end, June Mar Fajardo, a strong force inside the paint, flashed the thumbs-up sign as the players walked off the court.

It was victory No. 1 for Gilas, which will need a handful more, if they are to win the country’s first basketball gold in the Asian Games since 1962.

Coach Tim Cone was barely five years old when the Philippines, which treats basketball like religion, last won the gold in Jakarta, beating Japan in the final, 101-67.

The great Carlos Loyzaga and Kurt Bachmann, father of current Philippine Sports Commission chairman Richard Bachmann, were on that team.

But that was then, and this is now.

Cone liked what he saw. For one, the lopsided contest gave the late inclusions to the team, led by CJ Perez, the chance to blend well in an actual game.

”That was important for us to get that extra time. The five guys (including Marcio Lassiter, Chris Ross, Arvin Tolentino and Kevin Alas) are still feeling their way around,” said Cone.

Well, they don’t have much time to do that. Tomorrow, Gilas faces Thailand and on Saturday, it’s Jordan, a team led by a former PBA Best Import in Rondae Hollis-Jefferson.

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