DESPITE being drawn against what appears to be a lighter bracket in group play, Gilas Pilipinas coach Chot Reyes is erring on the side of caution, convinced his charges will have their hands full.
“We’re not overlooking our group. Malaysia and Singapore have improved over the years,” Reyes said recently on the Power and Play program hosted by former PBA Commissioner Noli Eala.
“(But) I’m a very optimistic coach and every time I go to battle, I always try to win it all,” he added.
The Filipinos launch their redemption bid when they take on Malaysia today in the men’s basketball tournament of the 32nd Southeast Asian Games at the Morodok Techo National Stadium in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh.
The match is set at 2 p.m., with the nationals keen on gaining a big head start in the biennial meet’s cage wars in their mission to regain the medal that matters most to Filipinos.
Naturalized Filipino forward Justin Brownlee is expected to show the way for the team that also includes PBA stars Christian Standhardinger, CJ Perez, Marcio Lassiter, skipper Chris Ross, Calvin Oftana, Chris Newsome, Arvin Tolentino, and Brandon Ganuelas-Rosser.
Collegiate standouts Jerom Lastimosa, Michael Phillips, and Mason Amos were also tapped to boost Gilas.
Named as reserves were Aaron Black and Ben Phillips, while Jeremiah Gray, who was part of the 15-man national training pool that trained for nearly a week at the Inspire Sports Academy in Calamba, did not join the trip after being bothered by a hurting knee.
“The goal is to win the gold. We’ve been really working hard these past two and a half weeks, building team chemistry, building camaraderie. Getting used to each other,” Ross said.
“We like our chances. But we know that these teams aren’t just gonna lay down. A lot of teams are beefing up their teams. But all the guys are ready for the challenge. We can’t wait to get started.”
Gilas will face Cambodia on Thursday and Singapore two days later.
Group B is composed of defending champion Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Laos.
The top two teams in each group will advance to the crossover semifinals on May 15, with the winners reaching the gold medal match on May 16.
