As Gilas Pilipinas faltered to 3D Canada Global Sports in the opener of the 39th William Jones Cup here in Taiwan, it dawned on Kiefer Ravena that his side, despite being the darlings of the tournament, are still the underdogs.
“Nakita namin kung ano yung mga nakakalaban dito,” reflected Ravena after Gilas’ 77-90 defeat at the Taipei Heping Basketball Gym. “‘Di kami yung pinakamatangkad, hindi din kami yung pinakamabilis.
“It was a good test for us. Unfortunately, we didn’t get the win.”
The 24-year-old combo guard finished with a team-high 12 points to go along with five rebounds, three assists, and three steals.
But the Phenom, ever competitive, does not want to dwell much on the Nationals’ weaknesses. Just like Coach Chot Reyes’ assessment, the product of the Ateneo basketball program believes that if they play with the same effort as they did against Canada, the result will be different in the next games.
“Pero yung puso at saka yung palaban namin na instincts, yun yung magdadala sa amin sa mga panalo eh,” said the two-time UAAP Most Valuable Player. “Talagang hahanap ka ng paraan. It’s a matter of finding ways to win.
“Yung ways na yun, medyo rough kasi makikipaglaban ka talaga sa kanila.”
With Gilas’ first assignment in the nine-day cagefest now in the books, the young squad have experience under their belt. And Ravena promises that he and the rest of the team will scratch and claw their way to rack up the wins.
“It’s going to be a dogfight in the next games,” Ravena promised.
