Smart Gilas vs Talk N Text / Should We Expect Another Rumble?

Smart Gilas will play Talk N Text today at 2:30 pm. Should we expect another rumble or is just one of those ordinary Philippine Basketball Association games where everyone plays hard and shakes hand after game? On this matter, I don't know but this I know referees will closely inspect Smart Gilas again.

The battle for PBA Pride is still ongoing and any team in the league that loses to the development team will be the butt of jokes of Gilas' fans and scorn by PBA supporters. I'm sure Talk N Text don't want to be the first professional squad to fall to Smart Gilas so it will be another hard-fought game and probably with the same intensity as a playoff match. A practice match between the sister clubs was stopped after a brawl ensued with four Talk N Text players ganging up on CJ Giles. I do hope it won't happen again as much as I like boxing it has no place in the basketball court. I like physical games not dirty ones.

If Smart Gilas defense doesn't improve Talk N Text guards like Jimmy Alapag, Mac Cardona, and Jason Castro will eat them alive. It will be fun to see the best point guard in Asia, Jimmy Alapag vs Andy Mark Barroca, touted by some to be the "Mighty Mouse" successor.

Smart Gilas's shooting disappointed me the last time as it was so POOR. (except Jvee Casio). They uncharacteristically missed so many open shots I can't believe it. The development team should be at its best against the DEFENDING Champions Talk N Text as the latter loves to score and plays like Gilas too (matching excellent ball movements and pick and roll plays).

The PBA said it will investigate what happened in the Burger King Smart Gilas match for possible lapses and I agree. I'm hoping they will release their findings soon.

Update 10 - 22 -09: Talk N Text destroyed Smart Gilas 103 - 70

Smart Gilas vs Burger King A Public Relations Disaster

Two days ago, the Burger King Whoppers scored a massive victory over Smart Gilas, 105 - 95. Immediately, some people think with this victory, Burger King and the Philippine Basketball Association trumpeted their superiority over the young upstarts. I'm sorry, but truth be told the game between Burger King and Smart Gilas was a PUBLIC RELATIONS DISASTER for the PBA and Burger King! If the franchise is using the PBA as a marketing vehicle, it should seriously rethink the image its projecting. With this spectacle, do you think neutrals would feel like eating in Burger King?

The first quarter of Smart Gilas vs Burger King match was a sorry sight. Four flagrant fouls were called in the 1st half alone. I've never seen this kind of thing happening in the PBA before. Even veteran commentator Andy Jao was shocked by what he's seeing (great job by Mr. Jao and Coach Del Rosario in calling the game). There's just a huge difference between hard-nosed defense and downright dirty. Luckily, in the second half, the referees gained control of the game. No more untoward incident happened.

Don't misunderstood me, I'm not pampering the development team. The Smart Gilas team is tough. They faced the likes of Jackson Vroman, Beshara, and other tough Asian cagers but didn't back down. Smart Gilas IS TOUGH, QUINITO, if they weren't they would react in an immature manner to every hard foul they received, INSTEAD, the players brushed it off. Wynne Arboleda can't even stand a heckling fan. In contrast, Smart Gilas cagers withstood being hit in the face, elbowed and undercut while making a layup without whining about it to the referees.

However, the intimidation tactics worked. "Our players became hesitant to drive to the basket and dive for the loose balls." wrote Chris Tiu in his blog.

Smart Gilas still has a long way to go.

Japeth Aguilar Is Finally With Smart Gilas

The longest running basketball soap opera known as Japeth Aguilar is now solved! A week ago, many were shocked when Aguilar signed a one-year contract with Burger King but some experts already know what's going on. They reckon Japeth will sign with BK and will be traded to Talk N Text. It is actually one of the proposals fans came up when the hullabaloo broke out two months ago. So, it has come to fruition. Now, we waiting for the trade. Red Bull will allegedly act as the third party as direct trade between sister teams is not allowed in the Philippine Basketball Association. What will happen then? Talk N Text will release Japeth Aguilar, then he will be free to play for his favorite team, the Smart Gilas. No, this is the last part of Japeth Aguilar's long journey.

This is what I said back in August:
Remember this person - Manny V. Pangilinan. He owns Smart Gilas team and has shares in Burger King. He WILL sort this thing out. For an accomplished business executive, this conflict is nothing new to him. He will solve this crisis, most likely behind the scenes. Trust me. Everything will turn out fine in the end.

MVP convinced Japeth to sign the contract with BK as the young man is at fault too. I think MVP assured Aguilar that in the end he will get to play for Smart Gilas so he signed the contract and ta-da his dream of playing for his country is now fulfilled. In conclusion, the plan SAVED THE FACES OF EVERYONE! Congratulations to the person who came up with the plan! Why didn't they do this much earlier? There was so much vitriol thrown around because of this mess. *sigh*

Smart Gilas vs Philippine Patriots / Line Up

Smart Gilas manhandled the Philippine Patriots 87 - 66. The team is still on a roll, since the Philippine Patriots will represent our country in the Asian Basketball League - I wish them good luck too.

Philippine Patriots Line Up

Khasim Mirza, Rob Wainwright, Froilan Baguion, Ricky Ricafuente, Erwin Sta. Maria, Nat Cruz, Dino Daa, former La Salle star Jerwin Gaco, Mark Andaya, Hafer Mondragon, Neil Raneses, Warren Ibanez and Christian Coronel and two imports Jason Dixon and Brandon Powell. The coach is Louie Alas.



Oh boy, The Singapore Slingers is the toughest team in the ABL, at least on paper. It faced three Philippine Basketball Association teams and lost only once to Ginebra San Miguel. Besides, they have been training for months and the players are quite familiar with each other. Kyle Jeffers (6-9) and Michael LeBlanc (6-6) are the Slingers' imports.

Updated 11 - 07 -09
Nonoy Baclao and Elmer Espiritu were recently added to the Patriots. They have been an excellent reinforcement.

Smart Gilas vs Powerade Team Pilipinas Result: Respect

Smart Gilas vs Powerade Team Pilipinas Result. What a great show of team basketball, hard nosed defense and determination Smart Gilas displayed last night? I never expected them to win - THAT BIG!!! The combo of CJ Giles and Japeth Aguilar is a huge headache for Powerade. It could really be frustrating playing against Smart Gilas. CJ Giles manning the paint and blocking shots. Everyone in Smart Gilas CAN SHOOT.

When Smart Gilas built a huge lead by halftime, I knew it would be hard for Powerade to recover because of the latter's poor shooting. James Yap and Jared Dillinger didn't give up, as usual, but one-on-one plays don't work against a well-oiled machine like Smart Gilas. Taulava and Thoss went missing too. It was Casio who was steadily held Gilas' wits in the early minutes of the first quarter when some of his team mates were lost. Quinito Henson was gloating in the first quarter when the "men" seemed to dominate the "boys" of Smart Gilas. But two straight three point shots wiped out Powerade's lead in the first quarter and Henson shut up. With nothing to talk about as "the boys" were whipping "the men", Quinito enumerated all the controversies the Gilas players got embroiled too. So this coming Philippine Basketball Association conference, Smart Gilas has to put up with bias refereeing and commentary. If they keep it up it will only fuel fan support for Gilas.

Smart Gilas boys' eager to prove something continued to rack up the points, putting up a twenty point lead in the third quarter. There was no let up in defense either as the paint was effectively covered forcing Powerade to shoot from outside or rely on occasional intrusions, the team totaled eight block shots in the game. Powerade seem to be clueless in defense failing to defend either on Ababou or Tiu who hit their shots. Aldrech Ramos also joined in the shooting party in the fourth. A Chris Tiu - CJ Giles alley op play basically finished Powerade with 2:16 left in the last canto, 90 - 67.

Days before the game, Coach Yeng Guiao was quoted as saying, "When the game starts, there's really no holding back," said Guiao. "We will definitely go for the win badly as there's so much pride at stake. They (Gilas) want to earn respect, but we won't give it to them. If they were in our shoes, they would do the same."

It is fair to say, Smart Gilas got the respect that they deserve now.

This is a sad end to the Powerade Team Pilipinas. It seemed that people's frustration with the PBA was vented on them. When Andy Mark Barroca challenged Willie Miller to a one-on-one and won, I remembered Powerade's game against Chinese Taipei, when Miller did a crossover against Tien Li and nailed a three-point shot to win the match. It was a great day for Philippine basketball, I will never forget that. The defeat to Smart Gilas marked a sad end for Powerade Team Pilipinas, a team which was never given a decent shot to succeed in Fiba-Asia Championship.

I'll let Quinito Henson's comments pass. I will give him another chance. It doesn't sound good hating on the National team, Mr. Henson.



Next game:

Smart Gilas vs Philippine Patriots 6:30 pm San Juan Arena

Smart Gilas vs Powerade Team Pilipinas / Battle of Attrition

Smart Gilas vs Powerade Team Pilipinas though organized for a good cause, make no mistake, this is a chance for some people to get given and pawn somebody. Now, if that is the case, then the game is worth watching. Yeng Guiao, coach of Powerade, has been dishing brutal shots at Rajko Toroman ever since the Serbian took the job as Smart Gilas "project director". Though silent, Toroman proved his doubters wrong by leading the RP Developmental Basketball team to notable performances from winning the first competition it JOINED (ASEAN-China) to 5th place in Fiba-Asia Champions Cup. The two coaches met again when Burger King faced Smart Gilas in an exhibition match last February. Nothing was settled as the match ended up tied 95 - 95. Now, scores will be settled. Smart Gilas and Rajko Toroman take their basketball seriously. To them, there's no such thing as an exhibition game. They give their best.

"It’s all about winning. It’s a charity game but we will go out there to give them a very good fight. We will try to be competitive in the game and this is a big challenge to the young guys.” Toroman told the Business Mirror last Wedsnesday.

And if you don't agree with my assessment here's Coach Yeng Guiao, "Kapag nag-umpisa na, there’s really no holding back. It cannot be denied, there’s a lot of pride involved between these two national teams. It is also for bragging rights.


Though most Philippine Basketball Association teams don't take exhibition games seriously (Alaska Aces lost to M.Lhuillier team in Liga Pilipinas), the game against Gilas is a different thing. Some people reckon the PBA's pride is at stake - a defeat to Gilas is a disaster. It became more apparent last Saturday when news reports leaked that several Talk N Text players ganged up on Smart Gilas reinforcement CJ Giles. It was only a practice game between sister teams and if I'm not mistaken they do play together a lot. Rick Olivares reported that TNT was getting frustrated in the paint by the combo of Giles and Japeth Aguilar. Worse, Gilas was leading by ten!

"Sayang. We looked up to them (Talk ‘N Text) as big brothers practicing with them from the start, idolizing them on television. Nakakawalang respeto" unnamed Gilas' cager told Olivares.

I do hope this nonsense won't happen tonight. I want to see a great basketball game.

Smart Gilas vs Powerade Team Pilipinas: Battle For Respect

Here another quote from Coach Yeng: "When the game starts, there's really no holding back," said Guiao. "We will definitely go for the win badly as there's so much pride at stake. They (Gilas) want to earn respect, but we won't give it to them. If they were in our shoes, they would do the same."

Don't worry Coach, they will earn your respect, just like the rest of Asia when they played in the continental club championship.

Match ups

Taulava, Thoss, & Raymundo vs Giles & Aguilar
Arboleda vs Barroca
Yap vs Ababou

Smart Gilas should be wary of Cyrus Baguio's quick counter attacks, Yap's three point shooting and De Ocampo's elbows. Powerade is squad not just brimming with talent but with experienced players like Taulava, even Thoss could pose a problem for Smart Gilas as he is quick, agile and most importantly have great timing to grab those rebounds. The development team has the advantage of being together for so long. It will not be as easy as most people think this game will be. A very determined squad of PBA veterans is hard to beat, just ask Chinese-Taipei (see story below) and Japan. Hopefully, the young ballers of Smart Gilas will learn a lot from this game and prove some people wrong.


Watch Smart Gilas vs Powerade Team Pilipinas

CS9 / BTV will cover the game. I'm not sure when. Please check this site

Try CS9 at 6:00 pm Tonight.

Japeth Aguilar: Smart Gilas- Burger King

Japeth Aguilar's saga is not yet over. Oh my! Japeth Aguilar, the 6-10 Western Kentucky University alumni, now wants to join Smart Gilas after participating in the Philippine Basketball Association draft weeks ago. As a result, he became the no.1 draft pick (by Burger King Whoopers). Now, most people thought Japeth's going to sign the contract but he didn't and instead expressed his intention to join the national team.Japeth could have made his life a lot easier if he'd only stuck with Smart Gilas Basketball. Oh well, luckily for Japeth, no contract was signed. As far as I know, the team and the draftee should work out the contract (negotiate terms) for specified number of days and if nothing happened the player will become a free agent. There are people who say even three years from now, Burger King will still own the rights to Japeth and he can't sign with any professional team without their approval. I don't know about that since PBA rules aren't posted in cyberspace where we can verify it ourselves unlike the National Basketball Association rules.

There were many cases of players who got drafted but wasn't offered a contract but I hadn't heard of no.1 pick refusing to play for the team that drafted him. Some people cite Victor Pablo and the Coke guy but I'm not familiar with their cases. I don't want to comment on them.

Points To Consider:
What Japeth Aguilar did really surprised me but legally speaking as long as he hadn't signed any contract, he has no obligation just like a Philippine Basketball Association team is has no obligation to hire its draftees.

Aguilar should've seriously considered his options. Now, he finds himself in a controversy that is avoidable. His reputation is taking a beating.

When I was in college I was taught nobody can force you to work if you don't want to or it will be tantamount to involuntary servitude and is unconstitutional.

In fairness to BK, they said they will allow Japeth to play for Smart Gilas. If Japeth talked personally to Burger King owners, I think this fiasco could have been prevented as long as they make a deal that would benefit both parties. We Filipinos are good in sorting things out through heart to heart talk.

Why the sudden change of heart?

When I returned home after graduating from Western Kentucky University it was mainly because I wanted the chance to play for the Philippines in the FIBA Asia Championships and feel the pride that comes from playing for my country.

Unfortunately it didn’t go too well. But having seen first hand what it was like, how the teams from the Middle-East played and the system they followed, I felt the challenge to try again and to take them on, confident that we could surely do better the next time with hard work, dedication and the willingness to sacrifice and learn.

I am prepared to do just that. My father Peter who also played for the Northern Consolidated national team wants me to do that and so do the other members of our family.

The only way I can achieve this goal is by playing for the Smart Gilas development team under coach Rajko Toroman provided of course that they accept me since I had initially decided to enter the PBA Annual Draft.

I am confident that they will.

The experience of Tinajin, China, opened my eyes and told me that if I truly want to help my country in international basketball I will have to sacrifice a career in the pro league with all the glamour and all the perks, and join the national pool for the present time.

I will always be grateful to coach Yeng Guiao for the opportunity he gave me to play for the Philippines, Powerade Team Filipinas manager JB Baylon and PBA Commissioner Sonny Barrios for their kindness, understanding and support.

I wish to extend my deep sense of gratitude to coach Yeng, Burger King team owner Mr. Bert Lina and team manager and PBA chairman Lito Alvarez for their confidence in my ability by making me their No.1 draft pick.

I trust they will understand that my desire to play for my country means more to me and my family than anything else.

I have made the choice with my family’s blessings and encouragement.

I hope and pray that my countrymen will support me in the effort to help strengthen the Philippine Team in its continuing quest for respect and redemption in international basketball.
SGD. Japeth Aguilar

bleachersbrew

The controversy led many people to unfairly judge Japeth Aguilar. Unfortunately, most of them are misinformed. Why are they so angry? Remember this person - Manny V. Pangilinan. He owns Smart Gilas team and has shares in Burger King. He WILL sort this thing out. For an accomplished business executive, this conflict is nothing new to him. He will solve this crisis, most likely behind the scenes. Trust me. Everything will turn out fine in the end.


Update: 9 -1 -09

Since we can't check the PBA rules online we are left in the dark. Now it turns out if a draftee refuses to sign the contract, he will have to sit out for two years and in the third year he becomes a free agent. There's no rule about banning. It will look bad to the public if the PBA bans Japeth for it will look like the league is forcing the young man to sign his contract. You ban someone because he doesn't want to sign a contract? How will it look it to the public? Worse, fans would question the fairness of the league. A PBA team HAS NO LIABILITY if it doesn't sign the player it drafted but it is not the same when the players won't. It will be a public relations nightmare and put the spotlight on the league. Burger King still has the rights to Japeth though for two years. I think it would be better if the sides try to settle this PRIVATELY and not talk to each other in the press.

Update 9 - 2 - 09
When a PBA team dumps a draftee, it's called a business decision when it's the other way around the draftee is called unprofessional. Yes, I know PBA teams spend millions but is this fair? One thing we Filipinos hate is inequality.

I still don't understand Japeth's decision-making. There must be something wrong with the contract Burger King offered to him. This is the root of the controversy anyway.

Philippine Basketball Association Should Just Lend Its Players To SBP

The Philippine Basketball Association plans to continue sending its players abroad for international tournaments. It's a great decision, in fairness to the league, BUT the better plan is for the PBA to just lend the cagers Coach Rajko Toroman wants to use for Smart Gilas. Yes, there are PBA players Toroman wants if I'm not mistaken Samigue Eman, Jay-R Reyes and Jason Castro assuming, of course, internet reports are true. I HOPE this is not "ningas cogon" again or just a publicity ploy. Don't raise our hopes up and smash it down later, please!

Fans are in unison saying Smart Gilas needs taller guards like Jared Dillinger.

“I believe the heart of coach Yeng as a Filipino was touched by this experience of his. He talked to me personally and asked me in the nicest of terms to open my mind to the PBA continuing to help out the national cause,” PBA commissioner Sonny Barrios told the Philippine Star

“He’s seen here that if we are going to do well internationally especially in the Asian region, the PBA must open its mind and I suppose he wants to start with me as the commissioner,” he said. (Barrios was in Tianjin. Now you know what it feels like supporting the country. Victory is sweet and defeat is bitter).

Mr. Sonny Barrios sir I have one request for the PBA to try Fiba Rules. No sir, not totally, the league can modify it as long as the essentials are retained. For example, PBA can still retain 12 4-minute quarters and the same number of timeouts, but the number of fouls allocated to players should be trimmed down to five from six and the hand signs refs use the league to mirror that of Fiba's. As I've said before it's the players that make the league exciting not the rules. No, sir I'm not telling you how to do your job I'm not qualified to do that just giving some unsolicited suggestion. Besides, nothing is so perfect that it cannot be improved. Please Mr. Barrios sir listen to Team Pilipinas basketball fans!


Update: 8 - 18 - 09

SBP Executive Director Noli Eala said: "At this point the SBP would want to take over the national team. If the PBA is open to being involved then it would have to be under the program and direction of SBP, including the selection of national coaches and implementation of program."

The Philippine Basketball Association had their chance and threw it away. Now, its time for new ideas. Samahang Basketball ng Pilipinas turn to lead.

Powerade Team Pilipinas (Philippines) vs Japan / We Will Win / Fiba-Asia 2009 Championship Result

Powerade Team Pilipinas vs Japan 9:00 pm on CS9. Who will have the last laugh? Is it Team Pilipinas or Japan? Hopefully, it is our team.

Day Two Fiba-Asia Schedule:

There are many analyses of this game and I'll offer my simple one. Japan usually uses two bread-and-butter plays

1. slash and kick out for three
2. slash and cut

This is what happened in the Jones Cup:

Slowly Japan clawed back using slash and kickout for three and other slash and cut play. It was effective they kept on using it. Our defenders get sucked by the slasher leaving some of the Japanese players open. The problem is the Nihonjin just shoot better from three.

I know the players are now aware of these plays and hopefully they can defend the three-point arc better. Our cagers should do everything to disrupt these attacks and counterattack quickly as Japan struggles in transition. Yes, there were many fastbreak opportunities in the game against Japan in the Jones Cup but most of it were wasted. Powerade Team Pilipinas wanted to play Harlem Globetrotters and ended up as Washington Generals. This urge to entertain is still with the team. There's nothing wrong with showboating - if they can make their shots. I enjoy seeing Japeth Aguilar float and slam the ball as long as he makes it ALL THE TIME.

If they can't defend against the Japanese three-point shooting it will be a hard basketball game for us to watch. It's not fun seeing your team scrambling around in defense and worse the shot goes in. Team Pilipinas can do it though.

Defensive Intensity

Hard-nosed man-to-man defense make Japanese players squirm. I saw that in the Jones Cup game esp in the first quarter but Powerade's intensity faded in the remainder of that game. The defense made it possible for them to build a 19 -point lead. Coach Yeng also he hadn't used the zone defense extensively against Japan or in any game in the Jones Cup.

Though I think Japan is used to playing against the zone (what league in Asia outlawed zone defense to a certain degree anyway) I'm hoping if Coach Yeng does use it, the strategy will pay off. Unlike the Jones Cup though, Yeng will stick to the line-up that works. If Team Pilipinas build a huge lead, I don't think they'll lose it so easily like what happened in Taiwan ( please! please!).

If they have pride, the Philippine Basketball Association led Team Pilipinas will work hard to win. Have some pride and avenge our loss to Japan! You can do it!

My support for Team Pilipinas is constant from the RP youth, Smart Gilas and now Powerade. This is not a fad for me. I do support and criticize when necessary even at the risk of being called a traitor or crab by fanatics for I want them to win!!!

Smart Gilas vs Indonesia (Satria Muda) Battle for Fifth Place

So it all came down to this...the battle for fifth place in this year's Fiba-Asia Champions Cup is between Smart Gilas and Indonesia (Smart Gilas vs Indonesia) represented by Satria Muda. Again, this game is important as it will give our team the experience in playing against the home team with the hostile home crowd. Satria Muda is powered by a pair of tough imports Nakiea Miller and Rashad Powell.It is also the time we avenge our loss to Indonesia in the SEABA club championship. Smart Gilas can do it. Our boys as usual are rarin' to go and good luck to them. Scouting reports say Satria Muda has three locals to look out for beside the two imports. I think our team can handle them (no offense meant to our Indonesian friends who have been great hosts according to the Filipino reporters who covered the competition).

CJ Giles do gets called for a lot of fouls nowadays and it might happen again versus the hosts. No worries though, our young cagers tend to work doubly hard to fill the void whenever Giles is in foul trouble.

Yes, fifth place is an achievement for a team made up of amateurs and formed less than six months ago. Yes, the players want to win but came up short due to inexperience and lack of ceiling. No, I'm not Ray Hatton I don't make excuses for other people. No, these players are not yet the best in the land because the league where our current best players are doesn't want to represent our country so this team was formed. The elders are supposed to set an example... but it doesn't apply here.

Next stop for Smart Gilas?
An unconfirmed four-game match against Japan National Team in Japan. Letran players in the team will be back home and prepare for the upcoming NCAA season.

Smart Gilas vs Korea (Sang Moo) Consolation

Hostilities resume in the Fiba-Asia Champions Cup tournament with Smart Gilas vs Korea as the first game of the day (hopefully the sked Fiba is giving is correct). Why is SBP Team Pilipinas in the consolation round? Well, last Sunday, African-powered Qatari team Al-Arabi eliminated the nationals in the competition 76 - 71. Lack of ceiling and inexperience cost our team this game. There are calls to add another import to reinforce our team as the present big man cannot provide stability for the team at the moment/

Smart Gilas vs Korea ( Sang Moo) is at 3:00 pm today. Our team might as well end this tourney with a bang - you know win its last two games and grab 5th place. This equals PBA Team Pilipinas placing in the 2005 Fiba-Asia Champions Cup - not bad for a team made up of amateurs. Smart Gilas has defeated Korea in the elimination phase before. I hope the team keeps its focus and win.

Coach's Toroman target was to reach the quarterfinals according to the Inquirer and mission accomplished. Although I believe Toroman wanted his team to reach the finals. Yes, it is better to set our sights higher. Man, if it happened, it will be a reason to celebrate - making it to the finals of a Fiba competition is no joke.

But Smart Gilas showed a lot of promise in this tournament. Yes, coaches of the Iranian and Qatari team has complimented the nationals. This team handled by Toroman is amazing - they have this never say die attitude and intense competitive spirit. They want to win for our country and hopefully the can fulfill their goal - qualifying for the 2012 London Olympics.

Smart Gilas vs Qatar (Al Arabi) Fiba-Asia Champions Cup Quarterfinals

It will be Smart Gilas vs Qatar (Al Arabi) in the quarterfinals of the Fiba-Asia Champions Cup. Yes the boys of SBP Team Pilipinas showed winning attitude and mental toughness to beat Kuwait yesterday 98 - 93. Although it was no bearing game, it is still better to notch a victory - in order for the team to have that winning habit. Next opponent for Smart Gilas is the Al Arabi team of Qatar. It has a 2-2 record in the competiton.

CJ Giles will play today as he only suffered a strained quadriceps according to the team's conditioning coach. He is needed esp in rebounding as Smart Gilas got outrebounded by its opponents in the tourney so far.

Smart Gilas vs Qatar (Al Arabi) 7:00pm Philippine Time. The Fiba-Asia site got it wrong. Smart Gilas is A2 as it placed second in Group A not A3 so its sked is the second to the last game tonight.

Coach Rajko Toroman is instilling competitive fire and winning attitude to his wards. Yes I love that.

"Even when I took the final time-out my message to the players was ‘we can either die like warriors or die like chickens.’ I’m proud my boys came out warriors."

Thank you for choosing our country to part your basketball knowledge Mr. Toroman.

You know what's unbelievable? Our team made up of amateurs have defeated import-powered professional squads from other countries! Yes, Smart Gilas defeated Kuwait without CJ Giles and playing against their reinforcements Harris and Box.


Update: FIBA Not Following Its Own Schedule
I was surprised when the game between Smart Gilas and Qatar started much later at 9:00 pm instead of 7:00 which is in the sked signed for by the Fiba-Asia head himself. Unbelievable. See for yourself Match No. 23

Smart Gilas vs Kuwait / CJ Giles Will Not Play

So its Smart Gilas vs Kuwait today? Great. The team needs to win against Kuwait and get the second spot in Group A. Smart Gilas will then have to play the 3rd placed team from Group B (either India or Indonesia depending on the result of their game today). Kuwait lost to Korea yesterday 66-69 while our team got a huge morale boosting win over Lebanon 91 - 86.

Unfortunately, the Inquirer reported CJ Giles won't be playing today. How will the young Smart Gilas squad react to this news? Hopefully, they would react in a positive way. The quarterfinals will start tomorrow and we will need CJ Giles more in the tournament's next phase.

Internet reports today say, SBP is looking for another back up import. Yes, it is necessary as the temporary absence of CJ Giles yesterday against Lebanon rattled the team. Although, Smart Gilas got its composure back - the need for another big man cannot be ignored. There are still enough talented big men in the country like Japeth Aguilar, Junmar Fajardo, and Rabeh Al-Husseini but some things are preventing them from representing the country at the moment. Hopefully, we will get to see them play together next year.

Japeth - graduation
Rabeh - after UAAP season
Fajardo- probably after he graduates from USC

Update: May 17, 2009

Smart Gilas won over Kuwait even without Giles 98 - 93. The Kuwaiti team has two imports reinforcing them.

Smart Gilas will meet Al Arabi of Qatar tonight. Smart Gilas finished second in Group A while Al Arabi third (tied with Satria Muda of Indonesia but the latter defeated the Qatari team earlier in the competition).

Smart Gilas vs Lebanon Schedule/ Live Update

So where are we going to watch Smart Gilas vs Lebanon (Al Riyadi) match live? We shouldn't have to ask that as there are many sports channels available on pay TV these days right? But no, we still have to. There's this channel called Basketball TV and I can't believe it is not covering the FIBA-Asia Champions Cup - the continent's highest club competition for BASKETBALL. I'm sure there are many fans interested in watching the game live. I think Basketball TV might broadcast the tournament - next month. Great --where's the thrill in that? Watching Smart Gilas vs Lebanon on some free streaming sites is good but if the host didn't archive it you will not see any replay. Oh don't get me wrong there are many sporting events covered by local sports channels it's just not the relevant ones we would like to watch.

Smart Gilas Schedule for Fiba-Asia Champions Cup

Friday May 15, 2009

Smart Gilas vs Lebanon 3:00 pm Philippine Time

Saturday May 16, 2009

Smart Gilas vs Kuwait 7:00 pm Philippine Time

Smart Gilas won their first game against Korea but had a hard time containing Iran's import in the second game. Without Jordan Vroman - Iran's import who had 40 + points - the result would either they won or it would have been a much closer game. No excuses though.

As usual Andy Barroca leads the team in scoring in the first two games. He is such a revelation. Barroca stood out among the Team Pilipinas aspirants. Smart Gilas Center Gregory Slaughter needs to toughen up more as Vroman swallowed him alive.

-----------------------------------

Smart Gilas won over Lebanon 91 -86. The game underscored our need for another big man as CJ Giles had a bad fall and had to be taken out of the match temporarily. Smart Gilas was leading 56 -43 and without Gileas it disappeared quickly. Through the efforts of Andy Mark Barroca, Aldrech Ramos and Dylan Ababou the team built a six point lead and never looked back. I admire the mental toughness of this Smart Gilas team. Great job boys!!