Terrence Romeo couldn’t help but be amazed as he had witnessed Jayson Castro’s heroics Sunday night, which helped SMART Gilas Pilipinas reign victorious over Makoto Hiejima and the upset-hungry Akatsuki Five of Japan.
Romeo saw how Castro bravely struck the dagger right into the hearts of the Japanese at the Mall of Asia Arena with 10.6 ticks left, which shut the door close in the visiting team’s furious comeback from 14 down and led to an 89-84 win.
“Talagang tagpagligtas ng bayan si Kuya Jayson
“Ibang klase talaga siya, kaya para sa’kin hindi ganoon kalaki yung kaba ko lalo na nung nakita kong nasa kanya yung bola nung last possession,” said Romeo, as Castro was also the one who saved the Filipinos from Japan during their first meeting in the 2019 FIBA World Cup Asian Qualifiers back in November of last year.
But aside from Castro, the 25-year-old also tipped his hat to the whole Gilas squad, as they have already earned a spot into the Qualifiers’ next phase after the victory. Gilas now owns a 3-1 card after the second window.
“Sobrang nakakaproud sila. Ibang klase,” expressed Romeo. “Nagdedeliver sila sa time na kailangang kailangan natin sila.
“Talagang proud ako sa kanila.”
Romeo has yet to see action for the Nationals due to his knee therapies. The third window will be on June 29, and for the GlobalPort Batang Pier star, he is optimistic that he’ll be able to join his brothers-at-arms that time.
“Mapa-promise ko siguro ready na ‘ko. Sana makatulong ako sa team,” shared Romeo. “‘Di ko sinasabing malaking factor yung pagdating ko.
“Ang gusto ko lang, kung sakaling makakarating ako by that time, is makatulong lang ako.”
