And that’s it for this year’s FIBA Asia Tournament. Philippine Team Gilas Pilipinas will come home with the silver after tonight’s championship match versus China. Not exactly the game I wanted to see, but it was something I’d also expected. From the game against Lebanon alone, we were already given a preview of what was to happen if we faced China: Lots of questionable calls from referees sending us into penalty early in the quarters and affording the rival team more free throws than we should.

Not to undermine China, however. They were formidable with very, very tall, young players with lots of athleticism and excellent basketball skills. They could have easily pulled away with a 50-point deficit banking on their skills alone, but I do believe Gilas played well defensively, keeping the margin as close as possible until the final seconds of the game. I also believe that the bad referee calls demoralized Gilas as the game wore on, and that didn’t bode well for our dear National Team. Still, I applaud the players for their gallant display of bravado and heart, from Jones Cup to FIBA Asia. Congratulations, #GilasPilipinas! <3 You guys are still our heroes!