COLUMN: 36-YEAR-OLD JUSTIN BROWNLEE KEEPS PROVING WORTH FOR GILAS

CHICAGO - With 16 ties and three lead changes, it was exactly the type of friendly Gilas Pilipinas needed as a tune-up before the FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament.

Tough and competitive.

And though our national team bowed to Turkey, 84-73, at the Akatlar Sports Arena in Istanbul, I thought their performance was very encouraging.

Two things impressed me the most.

Although Gilas struggled with the three-ball, hitting only 5-of-17, they shot 50.8 percent from the field overall (31-of-61), while their defense held Turkey to just 41.9 percent (26-of-62).

The 17 turnovers they coughed up were unpleasant to watch and I hope those miscues were not triggered by a lack of team cohesion, just a byproduct of jet lag after a 12-hour, 45-minute flight from Manila.

FREE THROW DIFFERENTIAL.

Gilas went 6-of-7 from the free throw line compared to Turkey's 18-of-22. Turkey's 18-6 edge on points manufactured from the stripe helped sway the outcome.

I wonder what coach Tim Cone thought of the refereeing and whether the potential of an uneven officiating concerns him moving forward.

PHOTO: Jerome Ascano

Cone's triangle offense didn't look deadly sharp, but 19 assists on 31 makes was pretty. And so was their dominance in the paint where June Mar Fajardo pounded in 24 points while helping the Philippines control the boards, 39-29.

I had once wrongly declared that Justin Brownlee's playing career had reached its expiration date. But at age 36 the Ginebra stalwart continued to be effective with 21 points and five boards.

Dwight Ramos missed six of seven shots on the way to a four-point night, but the Japan B.League mainstay proved his value beyond scoring by finishing with eight rebounds and seven assists.

Sotto swished a three and a nifty two-pointer at the elbow to push Gilas ahead, 20-17, midway through the first quarter. The 7-foot-3 center, however, did not have enough touches the rest of the way.

TAMAYO SHINES.

Carl Tamayo showed glimpses of the skillset that made him a star in the University of the Philippines. The 6-foot-8 forward tallied nine points and gathered five rebounds.

But Chris Newsome and Caltin Oftana hoisting only a combined four field goals with two conversions was interesting. Kevin Quiambao and Mason Amos did not play enough minutes to contribute.

Still, I don't view the above circumstances to be an issue.

Despite the loss I, give a B-plus to Gilas' performance and a similar rating to Cone and his deputies for an excellent game plan.

READ: Gilas Pilipinas far from satisfied after close loss to Turkey

Up next is Poland for another friendly encounter before the real competition arrives on July 3 and 4 with back-to-back dates against host Latvia and Georgia, respectively.

Hopefully, the Filipinos can dust off some of the cobwebs and put an A-effort to get a W and some momentum heading into the OQT.

Fingers crossed.

2024-06-28T16:08:09Z dg43tfdfdgfd