By REYNALD MAGALLON
Everything hinges on a single game – the one that holds the power to either bring the dreams within reach or shatter every fragment of hope and prayers from the entirety of this basketball-crazy nation.
The time is now.
And now is the time to show the lessons learned from the past.
Gilas Pilipinas takes its shot at destiny when it tangles against the Dominican Republic in front of what is expected to be a historic crowd in the 2023 FIBA World Cup at the Philippine Arena on Friday, Aug. 25.
The match is set at 8 p.m. with the Nationals hoping for a winning start to their bid to become the best placed-Asian team in the tournament and get a direct qualification to the 2024 Paris Olympics.
That, however, would be easier said than done especially with the world No.23 Dominicans boasting an NBA All-Star level talent in Karl-Anthony Town who is expected to be the biggest thorn to the side of Gilas.
The hosts, though, certainly are not lacking firepower with former NBA Sixth Man of the Year Jordan Clarkson also leading the way for the Filipinos.
Raising the curtain to the main event is the clash between Angola and powerhouse Italy which will also kick off the Group A action at 4 p.m.
Knowing full well the impact of the first game to the rest of their respective campaigns, the opposing coaches stressed the importance of putting all their focus and energy in the things they can control.
“I think the most important thing is for us to come in with a very calm, focused, intentional yet aggressive mindset coming into the ball game. I think that’s really the best we can do,” said Gilas Pilipinas head coach Chot Reyes whose team is definitely coming in as the heavy underdogs.
Gilas team captain Japeth Aguilar echoed the same sentiment and even pointed out that the Filipinos need to bring their best game against the Dominicans and that’s only when they’ll get a 50-50 chance of winning the game.
“Kailangan naming i-execute ‘yung game plan but you know, at the end of the day, even if we play a perfect game, you know, the caliber of Dominican Republic has, you know, it’s still a 50/50 game. We just gotta do our best,” he said.
Aguilar, Kai Sotto, AJ Edu and June Mar Fajardo will be carrying out the daunting task in the contest as they try to put a body and limit the production of Towns.
More than that, guys like Dwight Ramos, Scottie Thompson and Jamie Malonzo must all provide the added scoring punch if Gilas wishes to pull the rug from under the Dominican Republic.
The visiting team, however, are not coming in blind-sided with head coach Nestor Garcia already wary of the shooting of Gilas especially while playing in its turf and in front of its home crowd.
“We know the Filipinos, they are good shooters. When they play locally, they step up their level but everything is about concentration for us,” said Garcia who also has other potent weapons in Victor Liz, Gervis Solano and captain Eloy Vargas.
“There will be many people in the game. In this country they love basketball and they support the team but we are in focus when you play good, you can play and win everywhere. We know that,” he added.
Meanwhile, pumping up the ‘Puso’ for the huge crowd, tipped to break the FIBA attendance record of 32, 616 spectators, are performances from Sarah Geronimo and local bands The Dawn and Ben&Ben.
