HONG KONG — The Dominican Republic is in a celebratory mood after upsetting Italy 87-82 in the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2023 at the Smart Araneta Coliseum in Quezon City.
Six-foot-two shooting guard Andres Feliz played a key role in leading Los Quisqueyanos past the Azzurri. He tallied 24 points on the back of 7-of-10 three-point shooting in 33 minutes.
Feliz also contributed five rebounds and five assists.
What made this win more impressive for the Dominicans is that they overcame a 12-0 deficit, which was established in the first quarter courtesy of Marco Spissu’s lay-up at the 7:08 mark.
“I just was happy to be able to produce for the team. We didn’t start the way we wanted. For us, it was huge that we locked down on defense and then translated it to the offensive side,” said Feliz. “I’m just happy that we didn’t let up earlier in the game. Like I said, we got it back from the defense and that’s what brought us back in the game.
“I just gotta give a lot of credit to my teammates. Today they were amazing just finding whoever was on the hardest. I was feeling like I was the hardest tonight so I give all the credit to my teammates for sharing the ball with me and I was happy to produce for the team.”
The Azzurri, ranked 10th in the world, were favorites heading into this game against the 23rd-ranked Los Quisqueyanos. However, Feliz and Karl-Anthony Towns, who produced 24 points and 11 rebounds in 31:53 minutes, led the Dominican Republic to an unlikely victory.
Los Quisqueyanos coach Nestor Garcia was a very happy man after the match. He hugged Towns tightly in the mixed zone and was full of praise for his team after their historic win.
“We play for the people. We play for our pride. We play for a lot of things. It’s not only X and O’s. The attitude is very important for us. We play together and we play basketball,” said Garcia.
“I’m very happy today because the Dominican Republic never beat Italy. (It was) the first time in all history. For us, this is something unbelievable.”
With the victory, the Dominicans have one foot in the knockout stages. If Gilas Pilipinas beats Angola later tonight, Garcia, Feliz, and the rest of the Los Quisqueyanos have a safe passage into the next round.
They themselves will face the Black Antelopes this Tuesday. For now, though, they are in the mood to celebrate.
“He’s the best player on my team too,” said Feliz referring to Garcia.
“We love you don’t worry.
“I wanna kill these guys every practice, you know what I mean? But I’m happy because they know we want to play. They are like my sons. They follow instructions… They make me suffer always but when we play, they make me happy. For that, I love our players,” said Garcia.
