CHANGSHA, China: There were two scary things in the Gilas Pilipinas-Japan match on Sunday night in the Fiba Asia Olympic Qualifier here.
First was the injury Andray Blatche suffered early in the second quarter, and second, the way the Filipinos squirmed past the Japanese to stay in the upper half of Group E at the Changsha Social Work College Gymnasium.
Blatche’s right ankle had to be iced and heavily-taped before the naturalized center returned to help the Filipinos put away Japan, 73-66, and keep their momentum going into a critical clash with defending champion Iran on Monday.
The 6-foot-11 Blatche still went on to finish with 18 points and 10 rebounds, helping the Filipinos a great deal in the endgame as Japan fought furiously all game and almost succeeded in dealing Gilas a second upset loss in the tournament.
With the win, the Philippines rose to 2-1 in the standings, tied now with Palestine and half-a-game behind the Iranians, who plastered Hong Kong, 111-56, to keep No. 1 spot in their merged group and stay on course toward the lightest assignment in the quarterfinals.
The Filipinos started out hot but quickly cooled down and trailed after the first period.
Early in the second, the Japanese gave the Filipinos their biggest deficit in the tournament, 29-19, and looked poised to posting a reversal, more so with Blatche back in the locker room having his ankle treated.
But the Filipinos regained their wits on time and closed out the half sitting on a slim lead, only to be dragged into a close game in the stretch with a 9-2 closing run inside the final 2:20 saving the day for Gilas Pilipinas.
Terrence Romeo and Jason Castro helped the Filipinos through when Baltche was out, with Romeo again getting the better of NBA veteran Yuta Tabuse in their match up to finish with 12 points.
“It was everything we expected to be – a tough game,” Gilas coach Tab Baldwin said.
“We had a tense moment, same old concerns in our camp,” Baldwin said. “Attacking the zone is a concern, getting rebounds is a concern. We have to concentrate on those points.”
Ranidel de Ocampo broke the game’s last deadlock at 64-all with a booming triple, touching off that closing salvo for the Filipinos, who take another crack at Hamed Haddadi and the Iranians in the 11:45 a.m. game on Monday.
“Yeah, I’m good,” Blatche said when boarding the team bus after the game. “I just need to have a bit of rest for tomorrow and we will be ready (for Iran).”
The Philippines has not beaten Iran in three years, with its last win coming in the Jones Cup in Taipei in 2012 on the way to winning the title.
But Haddadi did not play in that game, and the 7-foot-2 NBA veteran with the Memphis Grizzlies is in far better – fresher – shape than Blatche, with the Iranians barely pushed in this tournament after four games thus far.
“It’s going to be a tough game, that’s for sure,” guard Gabe Norwood said.
“We don’t just ride on one horse,” Baldwin said, referring to the injury on Blatche and how it could affect the outcome of the Iran game. “Andray’s important in the makeup of our team.
“But we have a team, capable of plugging holes,” the naturalized New Zealander went on. “That’s our belief, we train that way. We’re not afraid (playing without Blatche against Iran).”
After the Iranians, the Filipinos will clash with India on Tuesday to end their preliminary round schedule.
It is important for the Philippines to finish at least second in its group to avoid an early clash with either China or South Korea in the quarterfinals that start on Friday.
Gilas overcomes Blatche injury to beat Japan
