Lebanon ends RP Gilas' Cinderella run in Dubai

Playing all-Filipino and up against a team that paraded five American imports, Smart Gilas Pilipinas’ amazing Cinderella run in the 21st Dubai International Basketball Championships ended Friday night. The Rajko Toroman-coached Philippine developmental squad, playing minus injured reinforcement Jamal Sampson, suffered a stinging 79-76 loss at the hands of Lebanon’s Al-Riyadi in the semifinal round at the Al Ahli Sports Club.

Lebanon, which lost to the Philippines in the 2009 FIBA Asia Champions Cup in Jakarta, overhauled its line up and added former Gilas prospect CJ Giles and Nate Johnson. They will face Iran’s Mahram in the finals after the defending FIBA-Asia Cup champions defeated Syria in the other semis pairing. Hoping to continue their giant-killing ways, after pulling off stunning wins against taller and heftier clubs from the Middle East and North Africa, the RP developmental will face opening game tormentor Syria in the battle for third place at 4 p.m. (8 p.m. Manila time) on Saturday to be followed by the championship match between the region’s two powerhouse squads. Syria defeated Gilas in their opening match, 90-76, with Sampson also sitting out the said game. Enjoying a 76-71 lead, entering the final two minutes of the contest, the Gilas crew failed to counter Al Riyadi's closing 8-0 run as Lebanon earned the second finals berth. The score was even tied at 65-65 with 5:57 left in the game. But a 9-0 Gilas run let them enjoy a 74-65 advantage 3:59 to go sending the pro-Filipino crowd, made up mostly of migrant workers in the region, in a frenzy. Giles, who paced Al Riyadi with 29 points, then went to work to power Lebanon’s comeback win. Mac Baracel led Gilas with 23 points while Chris Tiu (left leg) and JV Casio (contusion), who both played hurt, added 17 and 10 markers. Despite the loss, Toroman is pleased with Gilas’ performance and noted that despite playing against teams with bigger imports and naturalized players the locals showed they are no pushover against the region’s powerhouse squads. "But (Al-Riyadi) has two (former) NBA players, lots of Americans, lots of national players. That’s why I told the players not to be disappointed and we have to be proud and I’m proud of them because this tournament they showed that for 10 months they would be very competitive in Asia," said Toroman. "This team showed the heart, great pride and showed everybody how the Filipnos have to fight for his flag and country. I think this tournament (brought back) the international respect to Philippine basketball," he added. Even Al Riyadi coach Abou Chakra is impressed with Gilas' performance. "(Gilas) is one of the best teams in Asia that I saw. They have lots of skills, they are young, they are selected from great programs and you can see from the group they almost beat everybody." Gilas almost eliminated four-time Dubai caging winners Lebanon but succumbed to the pressure of Al Riyadi’s zone defense. "I think that the experience decided the game. They (Al Riyadi) put the zone and we couldn’t execute and score against it," said Toroman. Sampson sat out his second game in the tournament and his absence didn’t help Gilas’ cause as the RP developmental squad also missed the services of Rabeh Al-Hussaini (studies) and Aldrech Ramos (pneumonia). Injuries also plagued some of the Gilas players with Mark Barroca (back), Dylan Ababou (nose), Jason Ballesteros (left shoulder) and Japeth Aguilar (recovering from dengue) failing to suit up for the Smart-backed squad. "Our problem is the big guys. You know we don’t have too much inside game and that’s really our big problem. I think though that Jason and Greg Slaughter gave their all and every last energy they have," said Toroman. – With reports from Angel Tesorero, GMANews.TV