URATEX Dream could hold its head high knowing that it gave it all to reach the quarterfinals of the Red Bull Half Court World Final in Belgrade, Serbia.
The Filipina crew bowed to Australia 5-9 in the knockout over the weekend but remained proud of this recent accomplishment.
“Happy kami na naipakita namin na kaya naming makipagsabayan dito. Lumaban kami hanggang dulo,” said Kaye Pingol, who teamed up with Mikka Cacho, Sam Harada, and Blanche Bahuyan in this campaign.
After tasting a tough 17-8 loss to eventual champion Egypt five days back, the Philippine crew responded with a close 7-6 win over Italy before demolishing Kuwait 21-7 and Sri Lanka 18-7, to finish second in Group A with its 3-1 win-loss column and book its ticket to the knockout phase.
Team owner Peachy Medina applauded her girls’ efforts stating, “I asked the girls to represent the Philippines well and I’m glad they did with their gritty performances and excellent display of sportsmanship.”
Uratex Dream even drew praise from its opponents, with the Australian team saying that it was “their toughest game in the tournament.”
This only motivates Medina to continue the crusade.
“Seeing the level of the other teams makes us aspire more for women’s basketball in the Philippines. We’d like to reach that level and we hope that our girls, with this incredible experience tucked under their belt, would do their share in helping achieve that,” she said, with the team looking to do more basketball clinics and outreach programs for the remainder of the year.
Uratex Dream is also looking at the WMovement’s Second 3×3 Elite Invitational Tournament as part of its preparations for the second staging of the Manila Hustle 3×3 in February next year.
Over in the men’s side, TNT Triple Giga got knocked out of the last 16 after a slim 18-17 loss to Dominican Republic.
