Conqueror Indonesia or tough Thailand will be Gilas Pilipinas’ semifinals foe
PHNOM PENH — Gilas Pilipinas better be at their sharpest under the difficult conditions of the 32nd Southeast Asian Games or else suffer a more embarrassing finish than last time.
The Nationals continue their redemption drive from that numbing, unacceptable-to-most silver in Vietnam as they return to the linoleum surface of the Morodok Techo Elephant Hall 2 today in a can’t-lose semifinal game.
The opponent of the Group A No. 2 Filipinos in the 5 p.m. Final Four (6 p.m. Manila time) won’t be known until 2021 conqueror Indonesia and tough Thailand have settled their fight for top seeding over in Group B.
The Timnas and the Thais were slated to play last night.
Either way, it will be a tough matchup for the Chot Reyes-coached team, which is dealing with the slippery court and other off-court issues like lack of quality training venues on the side.
The Timnas are parading three naturalized players in Lester Prosper, Anthony Beane and Dame Diagne in a bid to retain the crown they famously snatched from Gilas last year.
Thai-Americans Tyler Lamb, Moises Morgan, Frederick Lee Jones Lish, Antonio Price Soonthornchote, and Jakongmee Morgan, meanwhile, lead Thailand’s ambitious rise-to-the-top mission.
Gilas goes into the semis as the No. 2 team in Group A on its 2-1 record, yielding the top seeding to a naturalized player-laden Cambodia, which went undefeated in three games.
After a 79-68 loss to Cambodia dropped them to 1-1, the Nationals rebounded with a 105-45 thrashing of lightweight Singapore to secure their semis entry.
“Of course, everyone was disappointed after the loss (to Cambodia). But we kept our focus in the big picture. We came here to win the gold so we’re focused on that,” said Mr. Reyes.
The Pinoy dribblers used the Singapore game as “preparatory practice” for the semis, where a loss could relegate them to the battle for the bronze. — Olmin Leyba
