Gilas Pilipinas head coach Chot Reyes took full responsibility for the loss that ended the nation’s reign as hoop kings in the 31st Southeast Asian Games.
The Filipino dribblers yielded to a determined Indonesia through an 85-81 decision in a thrilling finale at the Thanh Tri Gymnasium in Hanoi, Vietnam Sunday evening, settling for a silver medal for the first time in 33 years.
“Well, our players tried their best. Indonesia came in with a very good game,” the veteran internationalist told the Philippine Star’s Luisa Morales and Spin.ph’s Reuben Terrado. “They shot really well from the three-point line, in the end, we just couldn’t match it.
“That’s all on me. I take full accountability and responsibility for the result. Like I said, the players tried their best. That’s sports. That’s life.”
Gilas was far from the team that dominated its previous assignments as it played catch-up all game long. Worse, it couldn’t find the mark from deep.
The crew made just three of its 16 shots from downtown. Their foes, meanwhile, went 13-of-31 — three-point shooting was the Indonesians’ bread-and-butter in the tilt as they sank an average of 10.5 triples across six games.
Furthermore, the new ASEAN rulers initiated a well-deployed attack, with former NBA cager Marques Bolden leading the way with 18 and 10.
(C) PSC-POC Media Group
Even 19-year-old sensation Derrick Xzavierro made a mark in the win. The 6-foot-8 forward made 14 markers, as a total of five players finished in double figures in the victory that gave the country its first SEAG men’s cage title.
Size and shooting became issues indeed, and Reyes said that not having Japeth Aguilar, Robert Bolick, and Dwight Ramos hurt their chances.
The 6-foot-9 forward was not able to join the team due to a calf injury he suffered during the 2021-22 PBA Governors’ Cup semifinals.
Bolick, on the other hand, backed out to be with his ailing father in the States. Ramos wasn’t able to make it due to his B.League commitment as he was in the midst of negotiations with Hokkaido, which he eventually signed with.
“We needed an extra mobile big man aside from Troy [Rosario] and that should’ve been Japeth,” offered the champion coach.
“And, our outside shooting was really bad. And that was Dwight Ramos and Bolick — remember Robert Bolick was our original starting point guard here.”
Still, as tough as the loss was, Reyes isn’t offering any excuses whatsoever. “Things didn’t turn out the way we wanted, and that’s the way it goes.”
“But still, no excuses. I thought we had a team that still could get the job done, but we came up short,” he said.
“We just need to find a way to bounce back.”
