The King Abdullah Sports City Gym in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia was rocking on Monday morning (Manila time).
But it was not for the home team.
Despite being a road game, Gilas Pilipinas felt like they were at the SM Mall of Asia Arena when they went up against Saudi Arabia as the majority of the 10,000 seats in the venue were filled by the overseas Filipino workers based there.
And it definitely excited Gilas, according to Scottie Thompson. Moreover, it affected their game as they wanted to bring showtime to their compatriots.
“In the first half, we were too excited. We had a lot of turnovers.
“Good thing, we got to recover in the second half and pull it off,” shared Thompson.
Coming off a huge 74-66 win over Jordan in Amman last Friday, Gilas came out flatfooted in the first half of their game against Saudi Arabia — a team they defeated 84-46 just three months ago in Pasay City.
In the first 20 minutes of the ballgame, Gilas shot just 12-of-34 from the field, holding just a 31-25 lead at the half.
(C) FIBA.basketball
“Well, first of all, kudos to the Saudi national team. I thought they played hard and came in with a very good game plan. We expected it,” said Gilas head coach Chot Reyes. “We knew the high quality of this team and we had mentally prepared ourselves to struggle, coming off a tough game against Jordan and a tough trip.
“Luckily, we stayed patient through our early struggles.“
Still, the Filipinos inside the grand arena did not settle down. Even at the halftime break, they remained boisterous.
And it helped the psyche of Gilas.
“I think we got a lot of energy from the crowd. They really gave us a huge boost and they did not allow us to lose, until we hit our stride, hit our shots in the third quarter,” said Reyes.
Behind Roger Pogoy’s hot-shooting and CJ Perez’s off-the-bench spark, Gilas gained a 50-34 lead midway through the third canto.
Though Saudi Arabia threatened to close the gap in the final frame, the Filipino cagers were able to pull out crucial stops and momentum-shifting baskets to seal a 76-63 win.
“We were able to use our defense essentially to pull off the victory,” continued Reyes, who achieved his first window sweep since Window 1 of the 2019 qualis.
For Thompson — who is used to having legions of fans cheer him on in the PBA, he is just grateful to have those fans boosting them as they helped them overcome the fatigue they were in from the games and travel.
“First and foremost, we just want to thank God for the win tonight and of course, the Filipinos coming out there coming to support us,” said Thompson, who got nine points, nine rebounds, three assists, and two steals against Saudi.
