‘Halftime’ done for Gilas, which hopes to complete Fiba job vs Iran

Kai Sotto (right) and AJ Edu will anchor the Philippines’ interior against Iran. —FIBA PHOTO

A dramatic Friday night win over Jordan did nothing to widen the margin of error for Gilas Pilipinas in the Fiba World Cup Asian Qualifiers.

The Filipinos know they need to set aside an 82-81 victory and go for another favorable result when they host Iran on Sunday at the Mall of Asia Arena.

“From our calculations, we got to win five or six in this round,” coach Tim Cone said ahead of the 8 p.m. matchup, which the Philippines must win in hopes of closing in on the standings in Group E.

For Cone, defeating Jordan was just half the job, and beating Iran would check a major task box.

Gilas’ win over Jordan and Iran’s loss to New Zealand, also in overtime, made the standings interesting for the Philippines. While Australia is running away from the pack with a 7-0 (win-loss) record, Jordan and Iran fell into a tie with New Zealand at 5-2.

The Philippines, meanwhile, has three wins in seven matches.

Sunday will also see New Zealand playing Syria at 2 p.m., and Jordan taking on Australia at 5 p.m. at the same venue. The Jordan-Australia game could also have some implications in Gilas’ World Cup bid.

But Cone said they won’t rely on other results.

“We got to take care of our own business,” he said. “This (Jordan win) is like halftime for us, but we haven’t won anything. We have to win the whole thing. Right now, it’s just halftime and we got another [half] to play.”

Momentum is something Gilas hopes to maximize, not only because of the way it won, but also because it is playing at home once more.

The win was cemented by Kai Sotto’s game-saving block in the end, Kevin Quiambao’s go-ahead three, CJ Perez’s clutch buckets and Scottie Thompson’s defense and hustle.

Sotto’s presence justified what many believe—that he’s the missing piece to the Gilas puzzle since he last played for the national team in 2024. Perez, on the other hand, put up what is arguably his best performance on the international level.

Perez also set up the pass for Quiambao, whose three gave Gilas the lead for good. Thompson, however, remained a polarizing figure, with fans either praising the intangibles he provided or ruing his five-second inbound violation that almost cost the game.

One concern being determined at press time is the status of Carl Tamayo, who scored eight points, for Sunday. The former University of the Philippines standout rolled his left ankle during the third quarter. Cone hinted that he may tweak his roster by replacing him with either Justin Arana or RJ Abarrientos if he can’t go. INQ