They were right.
It was exactly the atmosphere France experienced when they collided with Gilas Pilipinas on Tuesday night in Day 1 of the 2016 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament here.
“We heard there is going to be a lot (of people),” France chieftain Boris Diaw said.
“The Philippines loves basketball, it is the number one sport in the country.”
The Philippines jumped out of the gates, playing with energy to assert control against the no. 5-ranked team in the world. Gilas led by as much as 28-18, and led for 17:05 in the first half alone.
The crowd also got involved, even getting rowdy every time the Les Bleus get a touch of the ball.
“We know they were going to play hard. We know playing the Philippines at home will be hard. They play with a lot of energy and euphoria, and they did,” Diaw said.
“They hit some tough shots, they made some tough plays, but we were able to stay on defense and come back in the game.”
Diaw, who had nine points, nine rebounds, and six assists on 3-for-6 shooting in the win, said Gilas were also difficult to defend because of their ball movement and outside shooting.
“They played good together. They shared the ball, they moved the ball. They are very accurate. They make a lot of shots, a lot of threes. They are hard to play,” Diaw said.
The San Antonio Spurs forward added that with the way Gilas played against them, he believes they have a good chance against New Zealand on Wednesday.
“They got a good chance to win. They were solid tonight, they played together, they made some baskets, they played with a lot of energy,” Diaw said, adding the Manila OQT is anybody’s tournament.
“This kind of tournament, everybody deserves to be here. They have to win before to make it to this tournament. So everybody gots a chance,” he said.
Gilas will play New Zealand at 9:00 p.m. on Wednesday, a match that is pegged to be the do-or-die game in Group B of the tournament.
